Lightsource Labs has signed a strategic partnership with Wallbox to allow users of its home management platform Tribe to perform vehicle-to-grid (V2G) services.
The partnership is being rolled out in the UK, Spain and Australia, and combines Wallbox’s bidirectional DC home charger Quasar with Tribe.
Tribe incorporates machine-learning technology to forecast the consumption profiles of the home and uses weather forecast and tariff information to automatically select the best operating schedules for each device.
Lightsource Labs – the in-house energy technology business of solar developer Lightsource BP – claimed that savings of up to 15% on energy bills can be achieved when drivers add Tribe to their existing solar, battery storage and EV charger system.
With the addition of Quasar’s bidirectional technology, Tribe users will now be able to use their EV as an additional power storage unit as well as offer V2G services, therefore providing both distribution network operators and electricity system operators with energy flexibility services.
The partnership is to assist users in overcoming one of what the company said is the greatest obstacles for renewable energy adoption in the home, with this being finding ways to store the overproduction of energy during low usage periods.
“The incorporation of a bidirectional charger to our platform will ensure customers can reduce the waste of their green energy, while also further reducing their overall energy costs,” said Benjamin Kott, CEO at Lightsource Labs.
Earlier this year, the company partnered Pure Planet to offer a solar and battery storage solution for UK homes with the intention of operating these as a virtual power plant.
It came just a few weeks after Lightsource Labs signed its first commercial partnerships with network operators, securing contracts to deliver local flexibility with UK Power Networks and Western Power Distribution.
