Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) pilot program

It depends on several factors:

• How much charge your vehicle has when the outage occurs
• How much of your battery you would like to reserve for your transportation needs
• What electrical need the vehicle is supporting during an outage

For example, a Ford F-150 Lightning with standard battery range with 80% starting charge can:

• Power an entire home for two days
• power critical home appliances such as a fridge for as long as a month
• Still keep 20% of the battery to power the vehicle

The upfront incentives were designed to offset the estimated extra cost of a bidirectional charger. The performance-based incentives and enrollment in the Emergency Load Reduction Program can provide additional savings.

After an electrician confirms you need a panel upgrade for your chosen EV charging station, you will need to contact PG&E to submit a change-of-service application. Form 79-1095 (PDF) allows you to grant authorization for the electrician to submit the application on your behalf. Change-of-service applications can be completed through the Customer Service Call Center at 1-877-743-7782 or Your Projects.

• You will need to include this information in your application:
  • Rate option: Choose the rate you'll use to charge your EV.
  • Charging load: Load amount from your EV supply equipment (EVSE). This is based on the charging system's voltage and amperage. An electrician can help you determine this information.
• This application will help PG&E's Express Connections expedite your change of service.
  • Turnaround time for completed panel upgrades is dependent on the customer, who will be asked to provide pictures of the project area.

Please note: It can take up to 3 weeks for Express Connections to respond to requests. Check the status of your application through the Your Projects portal.

Yes, you must be on one of the time-of-use (TOU) rates listed below. You may request a rate change through your online account, or by calling 1-877-743-7782.

• Residential – E-ELEC or EV2A
• Small Business – B6
• Medium Business – B10
• Large – B19 or B20
• Business Electric Vehicle – BEV-1 or BEV-2

An aggregator is responsible for sharing data between the utility and the customer’s smart device (in this case, your vehicle and charger). An aggregator does this for groups of customers and aggregates their information into one message to the utility. Find your aggregator listed under Getting Started, above.

Project EVITP requirements align with Assembly Bill 841 and CA Public Utilities Code 740.20.

• If the electric vehicle charging infrastructure and equipment to be installed supplies charging ports with 24.9 kilowatts or less and no charging ports supplying 25 kilowatts or more, then it will be installed by a contractor with an appropriate license classification, as determined by the Contractors’ State License Board, in good standing, with at least one electrician on each crew at all times during work hours who holds an Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Training Program (EVITP) certification.
• If the electric vehicle charging infrastructure and equipment to be installed supports at least one charging port supplying 25 kilowatts or more, then it will be installed by a contractor with an appropriate license classification, as determined by the Contractors’ State License Board, in good standing, with at least 25 percent of the total electricians working on the crew, at all times during work hours, holding EVITP certification.

The installer will need to sign an EVITP Affidavit (PDF) for the customer to include in their application to enroll in the V2X Pilots.

After performing an electrical assessment, contact PG&E to submit a change-of-service application. Form 79-1095 (PDF) will allow you to act on the customer’s behalf. Note that the customer’s authorization is required.

• Applications can be completed through the Customer Service Call Center at 1-877-743-7782 or Your Projects.
• You will need to include the following information in your application:
  • Rate option: Choose the rate the customer will use to charge their EV.
  • Charging load: Load amount from the EV supply equipment (EVSE). This is based on the charging system's voltage and amperage.
  • Panel upgrade: Does the dedicated circuit require a panel upgrade.
    If a panel upgrade is needed, this application helps PG&E's Express Connections expedite the change of service.
    Turnaround time for completed panel upgrades is dependent on the customer, who will be asked to provide pictures of the project area.

Please note: It can take up to 3 weeks for Express Connections to respond to requests. Check the status of your application through the Your Projects portal.

Under Electric Rule 21, the customer’s system will need to be interconnected to perform vehicle-to-grid (V2G) use cases. V2G use cases will not be tested until Phase 2 of the pilot (expected to start in late 2024). Systems that are not capable of V2G operation initially can be installed as backup generation only and submit an interconnection application later. Form 79-1095 (PDF) will allow you to act on the customer’s behalf but requires their authorization.

1. Backup generation only: Once installation is complete, call PG&E at 1-800-743-5000 to let us know for awareness when we are working on an outage in the area.
2. Interconnection for grid-tied systems: Your Projects portal → “Connect Solar Panels, Wind Turbines, or Other Generating Equipment” → “Complex Self Generation” → “Non-Export”
   • In the Project Name field, please include “VGI Pilot” to flag your application for processing.
   • On the Equipment screen, select the Uncompensated Export option in the Operating Mode drop down list.
   • Form 79-1070 (PDF) will be added to your Interconnection Agreement to allow export.

Customers with an existing solar or other renewable technology on solar can install a bidirectional EV. However, they will not receive solar credits for export from the vehicle. They will use the NEM Multiple Tariff for their existing system to earn solar credits. There will be equipment requirements (PDF) added to ensure energy is correctly metered.

Prices vary by hour and are set at 4 p.m. a day in advance. Trending prices are published up to seven days in advance. On Flex Alert Days, prices are updated again by 6 p.m. Check future hourly prices and shift your energy use to cheaper hours to save.

This rate includes a dynamic hourly price for Generation and Distribution. Transmission prices will match your existing rate plan

This rate includes a subscription that is based on your energy use for the same day and hour last year. If you use more energy than your subscription quantity for an hour, the additional energy use will be charged at the dynamic hourly price. If you use less energy than your subscription quantity for an hour, you will be credited the difference at the dynamic hourly price.

Prices will vary based on market conditions, which will affect the price to supply electricity (generation prices) and the price to distribute electricity (distribution prices). Generally, prices are higher during the summer months (June through September) and lower during other times of the year.

Prices are likely to be higher on extreme weather days or when grid conditions impact overall electricity demand. Through this pilot, you can check price trends a week ahead and plan to use energy when prices are lower to save. Also, your participation in this pilot is risk-free. See How is Hourly Flex Pricing risk-free? below. 

Working with your aggregator to optimize your electric vehicle charging and discharging according to the price signals will help you manage your energy use based on your preferences.

When demand for electricity increases dramatically, it can put a strain on the state's electric grid. When you avoid using electricity during hours of peak demand, you help prevent supply-and-demand issues that can lead to rotating outages. Lower demand also helps ensure that cleaner forms of energy are being supplied by minimizing the need for fossil-fuel plants.

We encourage customers to stay on for the duration of the pilot. This will help us assess the benefits of these rate plans for customers and grid reliability. Participation is risk-free, so you will not pay more on Hourly Flex Pricing than you would have on your current rate plan. However, you can end your participation if it doesn't work for you.

The pilot ends once funds are exhausted. Customers will not need to make any changes at the end of the pilot. They will remain on their current rate plan.

You will not pay more on Hourly Flex Pricing than you would have on your current rate plan.

While in the pilot:

• You continue to receive and pay your regular monthly PG&E energy statement, with energy charges based on your current rate plan.
• You will also receive a monthly supplemental Hourly Flex Pricing statement that tracks your performance while in the pilot program
• After 12 months, if you performed better in total on Hourly Flex Pricing than on your current rate plan, you will receive a credit for the difference. 

Dual participation in Hourly Flex Pricing and the following programs is prohibited:

• Base Interruptible Program, Capacity Bidding Program, Demand Response Automation Mechanism Demand Response Resource Adequacy Contracts, Demand Side Grid Support
• Flex Market Pilot
• Emergency Load Reduction Program except for Subgroup A5, which is a pilot requirement
• Optional Binding Mandatory Curtailment, Scheduled Load Reduction Program
• Any supply-side Demand Response programs or event-based load-modifying programs, regardless of the Load Serving Entity

CCA customers can enroll if their CCA has elected to participate in the pilot. Currently, no CCAs are participating. Check back soon to check if your CCA has elected to participate.

Please email us at HourlyFlexPricingBEVSupport@pge.com.