Nissan LEAF the answer to power outages

Nissan has announced its 'Nissan Energy' plan, a forward-looking project to incorporate electric vehicles like the upcoming second-generation Nissan LEAF in local power grids.

Three components of the plan – Nissan Energy Supply, Nissan Energy Share and Nissan Energy Storage – involve the Nissan LEAF and other electric vehicles being recharged from sustainable energy sources, storing the energy as a stationary batter would, and sharing the power for household or corporate use when the vehicle is parked.

The company anticipates the new Nissan LEAF could provide back-up power for homes and businesses during outages, and also return energy to the grid during critical periods.

Similar ideas have been floated in the past, but Nissan has actually commenced pilot programs in Japan, the USA and Europe. According to the company, the Nissan LEAF EV is at the heart of the 'ecosystem', recharging the car from renewable energy and hooking it up to domestic or corporate smart meters that can regulate the flow of power to and from the car.

"Nissan Energy will enable our customers to use their electric cars for much more than just driving – now they can be used in nearly every aspect of the customer's lives," said executive vice president Daniele Schillaci, Nissan's global head of marketing, sales and electric vehicles.

"Our Nissan Intelligent Mobility vision calls for changing how cars are integrated with society, and Nissan Energy turns that vision into reality."

Nissan's headquarters in North America, at Franklin, Tennessee, is running a fleet of the Nissan LEAF EVs to boost power during periods of peak demand. The company expects to see 'significant cost savings'.

In Germany, Nissan has joined forces with partners The Mobility House, ENERVIE and Amprion to use a LEAF fleet to pump power back into the national grid. And this 'virtual powerplant' is being replicated in Japan, with assistance from electric and telecommunication companies there.

A small but important aspect of Nissan Energy Supply is an updated satellite navigation system in the LEAF to pinpoint the location of charging stations for the vehicle owners.

According to Nissan, the company's EVs already on the road around the world store up to 10GWh (giga-Watt hours) of electrical power, making them a collective of portable power stations. This is where Nissan Energy Share enters the picture.

Using 'Vehicle to home' (V2H) energy sharing, the LEAF owner can power the home at night for lower cost than the grid or during brownout/blackout moments. Nissan and its partners are working on affordable accessories to make this happen.

On a larger scale, 'Vehicle to building' (V2B) energy sharing involves multiple cars – perhaps even hundreds – to provide electrical power to corporate facilities when the vehicles are not being driven. Nissan anticipates the commercial introduction of this power sharing paradigm during 2019.

In the case of 'Vehicle to grid' (V2G), LEAF owners are invited to supply energy back to the power grid as required. The plan with this type of scheme is for owners to be reimbursed by the power generators, but without using all the available power and leaving the car immobilised.

Nissan Energy Storage provides a pathway to recycling vehicle batteries after their effective working life in the vehicle has concluded. According to the company, old batteries can be removed from vehicles and re-purposed to power forklifts, for instance.

LEAF batteries refabricated by 4R Energy Corp have already been put to work powering heavy equipment in Japan. In the Netherlands Europe's biggest individual power storage system has been established at the Johan Cruyff Arena, which runs independently of the national power grid, thanks to the 148 Nissan LEAF batteries that are integral to the system.

"Nissan now offers customers a true EV ecosystem with Nissan Energy," said Schillaci.

"This is what we feel is the "new standard for electrification' – it's not just about owning a vehicle but taking advantage of all the associated benefits, for the customer and society overall."