Public bidirectional EV charging point installed to Finland

A public bidirectional electric vehicle charging point is being installed in Helsinki, Finland. The vehicle-to-grid (V2G) charging point complements an existing solar power plant and a stationary energy storage, and enables using EVs as energy storages and to stabilize the electricity grid.

The installed bidirectional charging device is a result of cooperation between Virta, Helen and Nissan. Only a few similar V2G charging stations are publicly available elsewhere in Europe. 

"With the V2G charging point we can utilize the battery of a car as a part of the energy system. In the future EVs are not just a burden, but a complementary feature in the electricity grid. Helen is testing the practical operation of V2G at the Suvilahti pilot site", says Helen’s Unit Manager Perttu Lahtinen.

"The interest towards using EVs as a part of the energy system is growing in the energy and transportation industries. Finland is one of the leading countries in smart energy solutions. The service we’re building for Helen is a part of our offering for energy utilities internationally", says Virta's CBO Elias Pöyry.

Balancing supply and demand

In the future, EV owners can utilise batteries of vehicles as an energy storage unit at home and also take part in balancing the electricity grid, and gain financial benefits as part of the service.

"Our joint project with Helen and Virta is the first step towards a fully integrated ecosystem in electric vehicle use in Finland. The development possibilities in energy management are better than ever before with the merging energy and vehicle sectors. Nissan sees electric vehicles as more than just a means of transport: the batteries of electric vehicles can also be utilised as mobile energy sources", says Nissan’s Zero Emission Strategy Manager Jarkko Ahlbom.

EV drivers’ participation in balancing the grid will be crucial when EVs and intermittent renewable energy sources become more common. Management systems that optimise distributed resources will be necessary in order to maintain a balance between electricity generation and consumption.

The V2G charging point will be free for Virta users

The Suvilahti charging point is part of EU’s mySmartLife project. One of the key research, test and product development platforms of the project is the Suvilahti area, which includes a solar power plant, an electricity storage facility and soon also the two-way electric vehicle charging point.

The V2G charging point in Suvilahti will be a public charging station, and in the test phase it will be free of charge for Virta end users.

The V2G functionality will be implemented so that the vehicle battery will be fully charged despite supporting the electricity network. In the initial stage, the V2G charging point will be suitable for Nissan electric vehicles.

More information: CBO Elias Pöyry, elias.poyry@virta.global, +358 500 426 125

Virta Ltd. is the innovation leader in electric vehicle charging services. Our platform connects all key players in the EV ecosystem. The platform allows running EV charging services of any size anywhere in the world. Virta operates in 8 countries around Europe and is the market leader in Finland.

The project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme in accordance with grant agreement No. 731297.