Kia Brings Vehicle-to-Home to USA and Smart Charge Feature to Netherlands – CleanTechnica

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Kia continues to act as a leader in the EV arena, today rolling out a couple of intelligent charging capabilities in the USA and the Netherlands.

Vehicle-to-Home Capability in USA

In certain US states, Kia is bringing vehicle-to-home (V2H) capability for EV9 owners. That means they can use the electricity in their EV9 batteries to power their homes if they happen to get hit with blackouts (from hurricanes, wildfires, heatwaves, flooding, or other causes).

The V2H capability launches in two days, on February 28, in California, New York, Florida, Texas, New Jersey, Illinois, and Washington. That covers much of the US population, and particularly states frequently hit by natural disasters that can knock out power grids.

In addition to being a backup power source in emergencies, though, the V2H capability also provides EV9 owners with the opportunity to buy electricity at times of low rates (i.e., charge at that time) and then use it to power their homes at times of high electricity rates. When this possibility has been discussed in the past, some have raised the concern of extra battery degradation from doing such a thing. However, experiences and research to date tell us that battery degradation is not something most of us should be worried about, as adequate battery storage capacity should exist for the life of most EVs — the vast majority of EVs. Battery management systems protect battery longevity, and concerns of battery degradation have been overhyped for years.

Note that “[a] Wallbox Quasar 2 charger is required for the V2H service, as well as a Wallbox Power Recovery Unit for Backup Power functionality.”

Kia plans to bring V2H capability to more places in the US and Europe in the future. Also, it is going beyond that and initiating vehicle-to-grid (V2G) efforts as well. “The company is collaborating with major utilities in California to further extend its V2G program,” Kia writes. “These initiatives align with the Group’s broader vision of transforming EVs into essential energy assets, reducing electricity costs for customers, and improving energy resilience.”

“As part of Hyundai Motor Group’s global Vehicle-to-Everything initiative, Kia’s new energy services are designed to offer EV owners not only enhanced convenience but also significant benefits in terms of cost savings and energy management. By expanding the role of our EVs beyond just transportation, we are solidifying Kia’s leadership position in the rapidly evolving EV-energy sector. Our commitment to integrating innovative solutions such as V2H and V2G ensures that Kia is at the forefront of this transition, creating a more sustainable and connected future for our customers,” said Heung Soo Kim, Executive Vice President and Head of Global Strategy Office at Hyundai Motor Group.

Indeed.

Smart Charging in the Netherlands

Perhaps this is not quite as exciting as V2H or V2G capability, but Kia also just rolled out more intelligent charging capability in the Netherlands.

This “Smart Charging” initiative “will help EV owners optimize charging costs by leveraging fluctuating electricity rates throughout the day,” Kia writes. “This enables EV owners to save on their electricity bills by charging their vehicles during periods of lower rates.” It’s not entirely clear how much this is automated versus just being a capability owners can manage manually at their convenience.

The capability requires getting the Kia Smart Charge app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store (the app is free). Luckily, in this case, the capability works with any home EV charger. The app “coordinates data from the vehicle and energy supplier to ensure the car is charged at the most cost-effective times,” which seems to imply this is mostly automated.

Later in the year, Kia does plan to roll out V2G capability in the Netherlands, which will let Kia EV owners actually sell electricity to the grid for a bit of extra income.

Kia continues to be an EV leader. But what I’d really like to see with all of this is a strong marketing campaign and an effort to dramatically ramp up EV production and sales — thus driving down costs and decarbonizing transportation faster. Let’s see how far Kia goes with this.