FCA, ENGIE Eps and Terna together for the
development of the biggest worldwide hub dedicated to sustainable
mobility
Regulatory News:
FCA, ENGIE Eps (Paris:EPS) and Terna have presented today, in
the evocative location of the Heritage Hub within the Mirafiori
FCA’s premises in Turin, the pilot project Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) of
electric mobility, which once totally completed, will become
worldwide the biggest of its kind.
The V2G installation, in the logistic service area of Drosso,
has been inaugurated during an international press conference in
the presence of the Minister of Economic Development, Stefano
Patuanelli, the representatives of the parliamentary committees
concerned with the day’s themes, the highest officials from the
Piedmont Region and the City of Turin – as well as many more guests
from national and international institutions and publications –
where FCA, ENGIE Eps and Terna presented the V2G project,
describing its features and how it works.
The V2G plant at Mirafiori is a project “100% made in Italy”. On
the one hand, it is a significant opportunity for the Italian
industrial system to take a leading role in the development of the
future of sustainable mobility. On the other, it is the result of
the joint effort of three companies that lead their sectors. In
their use of such an innovative technology, their experiments are
now beginning on a bidirectional charging solution that benefits
from physical aggregation in a single point of interconnection with
the power grid, capable of interacting with the other energy
resources on site.
V2G technology enables vehicles to exchange energy with the
power grid, making them a valuable resource for the national power
grid operated by Terna, to contribute to the establishment of a
more sustainable electrical system and to represent an opportunity
to optimize the operating costs of the cars for the benefit of
motorists, as well as a concrete possibility of contributing to a
more sustainable electricity system.
Bidirectional technology – which both charges the car and
returns power to the grid – can only work efficiently when the car
and the charging infrastructure speak a common language. This is
the focus of the trial launched with the inauguration of the
plant.
V2G thus represents a major opportunity, which is why FCA –
together with its partners ENGIE Eps, the technicians who built the
plant, and Terna, the operator of the high- and ultra-high-voltage
national power grid – has committed to a cutting-edge project, an
example of genuine innovation.
The construction of the plant in just four months, despite the
lockdown due to the COVID-19 outbreak, has enabled the
transformation of what is typically only a cost (the storage of
vehicles waiting to be delivered to the sales network) into a
benefit that could be exploited by vehicle fleet managers in the
not-too-distant future. Indeed, a (potentially high) number of
vehicles parked for long periods in one place represents an
opportunity to provide services to the network in an ‘aggregated’
manner.
Phase 1 of the plant’s construction has consisted of the
installation of 32 V2G columns capable of connecting 64 vehicles,
aimed at piloting the technology and managing the logistics of the
storage area. By the end of 2021, the Drosso V2G project will be
extended to interconnect up to 700 electric vehicles, making it the
largest facility of its kind ever built in the world. The
management of phase 2 will be mainly dictated by
cost-effectiveness: the objectives will be to provide services to
Terna power grid and to ensure a positive economic result for FCA
and ENGIE Eps.
To cover the parking spaces for the cars connected to the V2G,
ENGIE Italia is a partner in the construction of an enormous roof
consisting of around 12,000 solar panels, which will supply the
production and logistics facilities with ‘green’ energy. The plant
will be able to produce over 6,500 MWh of energy every year,
resulting in the offsetting of more than 2,100 tons of CO2
emissions per year, a boon for the environment. The project
therefore represents a significant contribution to decarbonization
in the industrial sector.
The press conference was divided into two parts, the first
structured as a talk show where the three stakeholder companies
went into greater detail on their rationale for deciding to become
part of this project.
Roberto Di Stefano (Head of e-Mobility for FCA’s EMEA
Region) explained: “Vehicle-to-Grid technology represents a
significant opportunity to optimize the operating costs of cars for
the benefit of motorists, as well as the concrete possibility of
contributing to the sustainability of the power grid. However, we
need a V2G-friendly regulatory environment. The Ministry of
Economic Development has laid down criteria and means to promote
the dissemination of Vehicle-to-Grid technology in Italy, with the
aim of facilitating the spread of electric vehicles and the
increase in flexible resources the electricity system requires for
sufficient mainstreaming of renewable sources. A full regulatory
framework is now expected to follow, referring to the fair
remuneration of network stabilization services and coverage of the
additional costs associated with the installation of bidirectional
connecting devices and measurement systems, for the provision of
ancillary services”.
For Massimiliano Garri (Director of Innovation and
Digital Solutions, Terna): “The V2G electric mobility project
presented today with FCA and ENGIE Eps is the result of a positive
shared pathway of research and development, which boosts Terna's
central role as an enabler of the energy transition. E-cars
represent a highly significant potential source of energy and a
great opportunity to help achieve a more sustainable and
decarbonized electricity system. The smart, bidirectional
interaction between cars and the grid also gives Terna more
flexibility resources and innovative services that, together with
our distinctive skill set, ensure increasingly reliable and
efficient service operations”.
Finally, Carlalberto Guglielminotti (Chief
Executive Officer, ENGIE Eps) stated: “in 2030, with the forecast
that even if only 5% of vehicles driven in Europe are electric, EVs
will become the dominant technology that will revolutionize the
power grid and will be decisive for every single balance within the
European energy markets.” ENGIE Eps, already a pioneer and leader
in microgrids and energy storage, felt compelled to take on the
challenge of managing this massive change in the world of energy,
by providing an innovative technology solution, as they always do.
That’s why, in 2017, ENGIE Eps made major investments in research
and development, jointly with FCA, to build Vehicle-to-Grid
technology, inaugurated today. In fact, V2G is the solution that
will bring about the biggest paradigm shift within the system of
electric mobility and the world's electrical systems. At ENGIE Eps,
we're extremely proud of having enabled its construction, finally
speeding up and increasing the sustainability of the already
unstoppable energy transition”.
The second part of the event was given over to technical
insights and to the conclusions of Pietro Gorlier (Chief Operating
Officer of FCA’s EMEA region) and Stefano Patuanelli, Minister of
Economic Development.
Pietro Gorlier stated: “sustainable mobility is a
key pillar for FCA, one on which all our activities are based. In
Italy alone – including with the launch of production related to
electric and electrified mobility – FCA is investing €5 billion,
affecting every one of our plants, with €2 billion of the total
destined for the Mirafiori complex. In this context, several other
projects are also taking place in addition to V2G, including the
solar panels of the Solar Power Production Units: a surface area of
150,000 square meters, capable of producing 15 MW of power and thus
contributing to reducing emissions by over 5,000 tons of CO2. Or
the Battery Hub, where batteries will be assembled using
state-of-the-art technology.
It is now vital that the regulatory aspects be set out, now
being worked on by the institutions. A national plan for public and
private charging infrastructure must also be launched to support
the rising number of electrified vehicles.”.
With a recorded video message, European Union Commissioner for
Energy Kadri Simson also wished to be present at the
event. She emphasized that “the EU energy systems will benefit
significantly from the participation of electric vehicles in all
electricity markets as electricity suppliers – either directly or
through aggregators. It will allow us to use more renewable
electricity for deep decarbonisation”.
In his closing remarks, Minister Stefano
Patuanelli stated that the Ministry of Economic Development
enters into constant discussion and dialog with the parties
involved in the construction of the future in this country, and
guaranteed the utmost commitment of his department to the building
of the regulatory framework and the related incentives required to
support the development of enabling technologies for electric
mobility. V2G acts as a central solution to increase accessibility
to this form of mobility. The implementation of this project places
Italy in a leading position in Europe
The day ended with the inauguration of the plant by Minister
Patuanelli and FCA Chairman John Elkann, who connected a new Fiat
500e to a bidirectional column in the V2G plant at the Drosso
logistics hub at Mirafiori, Turin.
* * *
ENGIE EPS
ENGIE EPS is an industrial player within the ENGIE group that
develops technologies to revolutionize the paradigm shift in the
global energy system towards renewable energy sources and electric
mobility. Listed on Euronext Paris (EPS:FP), ENGIE EPS is listed in
the CAC® Mid & Small and the CAC® All-Tradable financial
indices. Its registered office is in Paris and conducts its
research, development and manufacturing in Italy.
For more informations: www.engie-eps.com
* * *
FIAT CHRYSLER AUTOMOBILES
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is a global automaker that
designs, engineers, manufactures and sells vehicles in a portfolio
of exciting brands that includes Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler,
Dodge, Fiat, Fiat Professional, Jeep®, Lancia, Ram and Maserati. It
also sells parts and services under the Mopar name and operates in
the components and production systems sectors under the Comau and
Teksid brands. FCA employs nearly 200,000 people around the
globe.
For more information on FCA, please visit www.fcagroup.com
* * *
TERNA
The Terna Group is one of Europe's leading operators of energy
transmission networks and manages Italy's high-voltage national
grid, with over 74,000 km of power lines. Terna’s role is to ensure
the safety, quality and efficiency of the national electricity
system and access to equal conditions for all operators in the
market. Terna is at the heart of the process of energy transition
toward complete decarbonization and full integration into the grid
of energy produced from renewable sources.
For more information: www.terna.it.
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