Funding for bi-directional loading
Specializing in charging stations for electric boats, Aqua superPower announced in mid-December 2022 that it had received support from the UK government for the Virtual Bunkering for Electric Vessels or VBEV project. This project, carried out in collaboration with the company Indra, the transport expert Cenex and the University of Plymouth, aims to study the technical, operational and financial feasibility of bi-directional charging systems. The latter consists in using the batteries of electric boats as storage for the grid and the production of renewable energy when the boats are docked, in a logic sometimes called boat to grid, similar to developments already underway in the automotive industry.
An ecological and economic gain for ports and boaters
The boat to grid system has two major advantages. The first is to reduce the CO2 emissions of marinas by allowing them to store green energy produced on site. The project leaders estimate that in the UK alone, marinas will save 4 million tons of CO2.
The bi-directional charging also offers an economic interest for marinas and users by allowing to accelerate the deployment of the necessary infrastructures for the transition. Indeed, the yachtsman has access to cheaper energy, stored outside of peak periods and can even generate income linked to the storage periods, when the boat is not used at the quay. The availability of boat batteries for storage facilitates the implementation of renewable energy by eliminating the need to add dedicated batteries and by saving on grid costs for marinas and operators.
The results of the project, if positive, could be an important milestone, enabling Aqua superPower and beyond the entire industry to deploy the electric boat more quickly.
