The regulatory roadblocks that have restricted the widespread use of bidirectional charging by battery-electric vehicles in Australia are about to be removed.

The Australian standards relevant to bidirectional EV charging – or vehicle-to-grid (V2G) and vehicle-to-home (V2H) charging, as it is commonly referred to – have been rewritten and will be published before the end of 2024.

That promises to make it easier and more affordable to use the high-voltage battery pack of an EV to also power a house and return electricity to the grid for profit.

Experts in bidirectional charging predict the changes will boost demand for both rooftop solar power generation and EVs compatible with the technology.

“The standard is one of the key roadblocks from a market participation perspective,” said Tim Washington, CEO of EV charging technology provider JET Charge.

“The availability of vehicles and chargers are the others.”

V2H and V2G essentially refers to the ability of a battery-electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle to use stored electricity to either power a house or return it the grid.

Add solar rooftop power generation and a home-owner could recharge an electric vehicle at no cost and then draw on that power to run their house.

The ideal scenario is paying nothing to power your house and car and feed surplus electricity back into the grid for profit.

Bidirectional charging also negates the need to buy a separate storage battery for your home.

Bidirectional chargers that plug the vehicle into the house and allow a two-way flow of electricity are critical to the V2G process.

“It [the rewritten standards] will be one of the biggest game-changers for both utility bills and transport bills,” predicted Washington.

The relevant Australian standards are AS4777.1 and AS4777.2 and they deal with the installation and performance of inverters, which is what bidirectional chargers essentially are.

The rewritten AS4777.2 standard is to be published in the third quarter of 2024 and the rewritten AS4777.1 standard before the end of the year.

While standards are voluntary, they are often adopted by state and federal governments and become mandatory.

According to an official statement from Standards Australia, a broad range of updates have been made to AS4777.1 and AS4777.2 to support the ongoing development of inverter energy systems, including solar and battery systems.

“The modifications have been developed in consultation with the EV industry and manufacturers of bidirectional chargers. This is to support the emergence of a range of bidirectional EV charging options in the Australian market,” the statement read.

At the moment bidirectional V2G bidirectional chargers are only permitted in South Australia and across some applications in WA, NSW and the ACT for the CHAdeMO charging plug used by a few Japanese EVs.

The only bidirectional charger compliant with the current standards is the Wallbox Quasar 1, which costs about $10,000.

Washington explained the standard as it was written was open to interpretation and resulted in bidirectional chargers not being approved and listed under what is now known as the New Energy Tech Consumer Code (NETCC).

That meant individual negotiations with the many energy distribution networks in Australia to gain approval for bidirectional chargers.

“What the rule change does is get rid of all those ambiguities,” explained Washington. “And so if your unit is certified for 4777.2 it will be recognised by the regulatory body – it will get posted on the database and happy days, everyone can install.

“That’s the thing it unlocks.

“It gets us on the radar of the global hardware manufacturers who say Australia is now a market they can go into.”

The new standards are expected to result in a wider range of lower-priced bidirectional charges compatible with the much more widely used CCS2 charging plug that’s becoming available in Australia.

Vehicles that offer V2G compatibility in Australia include the Nissan LEAF and LEAF+ electric hatchbacks and Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross and Outlander PHEV SUVs.

Overseas, BMW, Ford and Renault have all committed to V2G.

Washington predicted bidirectional charger prices should settle around $6000-$7000 within three years and then dip below $5000 further out.

However, he cautioned there wouldn’t be a flood of bidirectional chargers hitting the Australian market once the standard is published.

“Most [bidirectional charger] manufacturers globally are still in testing phase with vehicle manufacturers,” he explained. “They are all proprietary systems.”

“If you want open source where any inverter works with any cars, that is going to take a bit longer.

“I expect the first prototype units to arrive this year and then mass-market release next year.”

Washington predicted cheaper access to V2G charging capability would encourage more people to consider EVs for their next car purchase.

“I think it will basically contribute to someone’s decision to buy an EV,” he said.

“If it’s the same price for a hybrid or an electric car… and the electric car is capable of powering your house, then you are going to pick the EV.”

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