Können Besitzer von Elektromobilen auch Geld vom Stromnetz verdienen? Was genau ist mit V2G-Ladegeräten los?

One has only heard that the power grid takes money from consumers. Have you ever heard that owners of electric vehicles "sell electricity" and thus earn money from the power grid?

According to a report by the China News Service on September 26, 2025, in August 2025, an electric vehicle owner in Wuhan at the Super Charging and Swapping Station at the Southern Taizi Lake fed electricity back into the grid via a V2G charging station (Vehicle-to-Grid, vehicle-grid interaction) and made a profit of 60 yuan within an hour. This news quickly caused a stir: Can electric vehicle owners really earn money by "selling electricity"?

With the release of the list of the first pilot cities for large-scale vehicle-grid interaction in China, V2G has moved from the laboratory bench to reality and become a decisive breakthrough in the integration of energy and transportation. So, what exactly is V2G? Is V2G a high-tech solution or just a commercial advertising slogan? How does it work? What economic logics and strategic significance lie behind it?

01

From the V2G concept to the large-scale pilot phase

The concept of V2G was first proposed in the 1990s by US professor Willett Kempton from the University of Delaware. The core idea is: Electric vehicles are not only means of transportation but also mobile energy storage devices. When a large number of electric vehicles are connected to the power grid, they can function like distributed batteries by feeding electricity into the grid during peak load periods and charging during off-peak hours, thus cushioning peak loads and improving grid stability and efficiency.

But due to battery technology, communication protocols, and the market mechanism, V2G remained in the experimental phase for a long time. Only in recent years, with the sharp increase in the number of electric vehicles, the extension of battery life, and the faster construction of smart power grids, has V2G finally got the opportunity to develop. Starting from 2023, several regions in China began to plan V2G demonstration projects. In 2024, the "Notification on the Release of the First Pilot Projects for the Large-scale Application of Vehicle-Grid Interaction" was officially issued, and nine cities such as Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing were selected, which means that V2G has entered the phase of large-scale exploration.

Professor Ouyang Minggao from Tsinghua University made it clear at the Teda International Forum 2025: "In the future, electric vehicles will not only be means of transportation but also 'cash cows' for households." He predicts that by 2050, the number of electric vehicles in China will exceed 350 million, and the total energy storage capacity can reach 24 billion kilowatt-hours, which corresponds to the country's daily total electricity consumption. If this huge energy storage network can be effectively controlled, it will completely change the operating model of the power system.

The core of V2G lies in the "two-stage charging and discharging" technology. Conventional charging stations can only charge vehicles unilaterally, while V2G charging stations have both the charging and discharging functions. The workflow is as follows:

Charging during off-peak hours: At night or during off-peak hours (e.g., from 0 to 8 am), the electricity price is low (e.g., 0.3 - 0.5 yuan per kilowatt-hour). Vehicle owners use private or public charging stations to charge their vehicles.

Discharging during peak hours: During the day in peak hours (e.g., from 4 pm to 12 am), the grid load is high and the electricity price is expensive (in some regions, it can reach up to 3 yuan per kilowatt-hour). Vehicle owners feed the excess electricity in their vehicles back into the grid via the V2G charging station and make a profit from the electricity price difference.

It should be emphasized that this model is based on intelligent control. Based on the vehicle-charging station-grid communication protocol (e.g., OCPP, ISO 15118), the power grid can automatically involve suitable electric vehicles in peak load regulation according to the load situation and thus achieve optimal resource allocation.

Take a V2G demonstration station in Beijing as an example. The discharging compensation is 0.7 yuan per kilowatt-hour, while the charging cost for households is only 0.47 yuan per kilowatt-hour. An electric vehicle with a battery capacity of 52 kWh, which discharges 30 kWh each time and participates 250 times a year, can theoretically make a net profit of over 1,700 yuan. In the pilot phase in Wuhan, the difference between peak and off-peak prices is over 2.5 yuan, and the profits are even more attractive.

02

Not only "saving", but also an energy revolution

Apparently, V2G enables vehicle owners to "earn money from the power grid", but its actual significance goes far beyond that. It is a profound revolution in the energy system and has several strategic meanings.

The Chinese power system is facing the challenge of "double peak loads". The air - conditioning load in summer and the heating load in winter lead to frequent electricity peaks. The conventional solutions rely on gas - fired power plants or pumped - storage power plants, which are expensive and associated with a long construction period. In contrast, V2G offers a flexible and cost - effective method for peak load regulation. According to calculations by the Tsinghua Sichuan Energy Internet Research Institute, V2G can achieve a peak load reduction of 200 gigawatts by 2030, which accounts for 10% - 12% of the country's maximum load. By 2035, it will even reach 800 - 900 gigawatts, which accounts for almost 40% and can essentially solve the problem of short - term peak load regulation.

Wind and solar energy are intermittent and unstable, and there is often "curtailment of wind and solar energy". V2G can act as a "mobile energy storage" to absorb the excess green energy and release it when there is no wind or sunlight, so as to improve the utilization efficiency of renewable energy. Ouyang Minggao has stated that in the future, V2G will "charge green electricity and replace peak - time electricity" and will replace carbon - intensive coal and gas power generation during peak load periods to support the goal of carbon neutrality. It is estimated that by 2035, V2G can achieve an emission reduction of about 1.7 billion tons.

V2G is a decisive step in creating an intelligent power grid with integrated "source - grid - load - storage". It brings the power system from the philosophy of "the source follows the load" to the philosophy of "the load follows the source" and enables a dynamic balance between supply and demand. Especially in scenarios such as "solar - storage - direct current - alternating current" buildings and industrial parks, V2G can work together with rooftop photovoltaic systems and energy storage systems to create a low - carbon energy micro - grid.

V2G has created a new business opportunity called "electricity trading + mobility service". Automobile manufacturers, charging station operators, power grid companies, and aggregators can jointly build a V2G ecosystem. For example, automobile manufacturers can offer packages such as "vehicles with V2G function + battery insurance + profit - sharing". Third - party platforms can aggregate the scattered vehicles to offer on the electricity market. According to calculations, the system benefits will increase exponentially when the number of participating vehicles reaches millions.

03

What challenges does V2G still face?

It should be noted that despite the rosy outlook, V2G still has many challenges to overcome.

Currently, the cost of a 7 - kW AC charging station is less than 1,000 yuan, while the price of a 15 - kW DC V2G charging station used to be over 10,000 yuan. Although it has now dropped below 5,000 yuan, it still hinders the spread. In addition, vehicles need to support the two - stage charging and discharging function. Some vehicle models require additional hardware, which increases the purchase cost.

The biggest problem for vehicle owners is the impact of frequent charging and discharging on battery life. Currently, most automobile manufacturers only offer a warranty of 8 years / 160,000 kilometers or about 300 cycles, while lithium - iron - phosphate batteries can actually support more than 3,000 cycles. If the battery wears out prematurely due to participating in V2G, users have to bear the cost of several tens of thousands of yuan for battery replacement themselves, which is not worthwhile.

The communication protocols between vehicles and charging stations of different brands are not yet unified, and cross - platform control is difficult. The power grid control system also needs to be upgraded to support the connection of large amounts of distributed resources.

Despite all these challenges, the development trend of V2G is irreversible. The industry predicts that starting from 2028, all new electric vehicles in China will be standard - equipped with V2G function, and by 2030, more than ten million vehicles will regularly participate in discharging. To achieve this goal, the cooperation of many parties is required:

Politically, the standards for V2G power injection, measurement, and billing need to be improved, and compensation mechanisms and insurance policies for batteries during peak load regulation need to be issued. From the enterprise side, automobile manufacturers should extend the battery warranty and develop special V2G vehicles. Charging station companies need to reduce costs and improve compatibility. Technologically, efficient power semiconductors, accurate battery state evaluation algorithms, and open communication protocols need to be developed urgently.

For users, it is easier. The publicity needs to be improved to eliminate safety concerns, and a "sensitive participation" model (e.g., automatic control, remote control) needs to be developed. As the media comments: "V2G is an underexplored value area." It is not only about whether electric vehicle owners can "save money from the power grid", but also about the depth and speed of China's energy transition. If each electric vehicle becomes a "stabilizer" and a "carbon - reduction pioneer" of the power grid, we may experience a new era where "driving equals energy storage and driving equals making money".

As an electric vehicle owner, are you ready to participate in this energy revolution?

This article is from the WeChat account “BT Business Technology”. Author: Yuan Fang. Published by 36Kr with permission.