Scalable, Resilient V2B Multi-Vehicle DC Platform (MVP DC) Demonstration at Public Buildings in California
Gridscape Solutions, Inc.
Recipient
Fremont, CA
Recipient Location
10th
Senate District
24th
Assembly District
$872,188
Amount Spent
Active
Project Status
Project Update
The design for Multi-Vehicle DC Platform (MVP DC) deployment at the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians (SPBMI) site is complete. Outside of this project, Gridscape has already deployed a community microgrid in the San Pasqual tribal area, a remote location in San Diego County, which includes seven buildings such as the main administrative office, education center, police station, and fire department. Located in a high-risk fire zone, the community experiences frequent power outages from the local utility. The site features 156.8 kW of solar generation, 240 kW and 480 kWh of stationary battery storage, and six Level 2 EV charging stations. It also includes a critical load panel that powers all emergency loads during a grid outage. The MVP DC system will be installed in the first half of 2025 to demonstrate vehicle-to-building (V2B) resilience, allowing multiple plug-in electric vehicles to charge and discharge at the site.
The team is also working on site designs for two additional project demonstration sites: the City of Fontana Public Works Department (PWD) and the Bay Area Youth Vaishnav Parivar Cultural & Community Center (BAYVP). Deployment at these sites is scheduled for the second half of 2025.
The Issue
Public buildings that serve as emergency and community centers often rely on polluting fossil fuel generators with fuel storage tanks to maintain operations during prolonged grid outages. While stationary lithium-ion battery energy storage offers a cleaner backup solution, these systems can be expensive, especially when scaled up in capacity to support multi-day outages. Large behind-the-meter stationary storage also tends to have low utilization, with much of its capacity going unused. Vehicle-to-building technologies offer a potentially lower-cost alternative for backup power compared to stationary storage. However, most previous demonstrations have focused on powering a single building with a single vehicle, limiting their scalability.
Project Innovation
This project will advance and demonstrate an innovative DC-coupled bidirectional charging system for electric vehicles, enabling multiple vehicles to discharge electricity simultaneously through a Rule 21-compliant, grid-forming inverter. The DC multi-vehicle platform for bidirectional charging will be showcased at three sites in California, located in low-income, disadvantaged, and Tribal communities. In collaboration with community-based organizations, each site will demonstrate the discharge of energy stored in electric vehicle batteries to power public buildings, enhancing community resilience during outages or intentional events.
Project Goals
Project Benefits
Vehicle-to-building technology can cost-effectively support critical community resilience centers and mitigate the impacts of public safety power shutoffs (PSPS) and other reliability events. The project will address barriers to broader adoption of vehicle-to-building technology for clean resilient backup power, demonstrate safe interconnection, and validate cost/benefits to customers and the grid.
Reliability
This project will result in the ratepayer benefits of greater electricity reliability and resilience by advancing vehicle-to-building technologies that can provide backup power for long durations at a lower cost than stationary behind-the-meter storage.
Safety
The vehicle-to-building system will meet all Rule 21 requirements and will safely interconnect with electricity distribution systems while providing additional benefits such as peak demand management to reduce site energy costs.
Environmental Sustainability
The technology demonstrated will replace fossil-based backup generators resulting in reduced greenhouse gas and local criteria air pollutant emissions.
Key Project Members
Vipul Gore
Subrecipients
Electric Power Research Institute, Inc.
BYD Coach & Bus dba RIDE Coach & Bus
THE ENERGY COALITION
Larsen & Toubro Limited
Match Partners
Electric Power Research Institute, Inc.
Gridscape Solutions, Inc.
