The electricity in the vehicles battery could be plugged back into the grid, instead of being stored.
The technique was pioneeredin Japanand our research will help us understand how best to use it in the UK.
So by charging electrical vehicles from renewable sources, we can lower our greenhouse emissions.
The plan sounds great but is made tricky because electricity is difficult to store.
But we already store huge amounts of electricity in our cars.
Thats more than theDinorwig pumped storage plantin Snowdonia, the UKs biggest storage facility, which stores around9GWh.
By 2030, the UK could have almost11 millionelectric vehicles on the road.
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to allow cars to power the grid on a technical level, three things need to happen.
First, a two-way transfer of power from the car to its charging point should be made possible.
This system is known as vehicle-to-grid and was firstintroduced in Japanafter the Fukushima disaster and the following power shortage.
But there are more areas of development needed to roll out the technology.
These include vehicle-to-grid charging hardware installation at home, vehicle compatibility, and energy market changes.
The third part of the technical puzzle is ensuring support from the power distribution networks.
But we believe focus should also be directed to cost benefits, eco-credentials, and convenience for drivers.
The process wont be smooth.
Solutions are numerous but will need support from power companies, and even car manufacturers and finance companies.
