Renault and EDF unveil bidirectional charging offering
The Renault Group and Électricité de France (EDF) will launch a new bidirectional charging offering in France next summer: The solution includes an electric vehicle, a wallbox, and intelligent charging management. Owners of electric vehicles from the Renault, Alpine, and Dacia brands will thus be able to feed power back from the EV battery into the grid.
Image: Renault
Renault and French energy company EDF, along with EDF subsidiaries IZI by EDF and Dreev, have announced a collaboration to accelerate the development of intelligent charging solutions for electric vehicles. The focus is on bidirectional charging (often abbreviated as V2G, V2H or V2X). In the initial phase, the partners plan to launch a bidirectional charging offering for private customers next summer. Interested parties will be offered a complete package through the Renault Group’s dealer network, including the installation of a home charging station (carried out by IZI and EDF) and an intelligent charge management service.
The agreement covers three areas of cooperation for single-family homes, which the partners will refine before the market launch: first, the distribution and installation of charging devices for private customers; second, services to simplify and optimise the charging process; and third, the creation of services that enable the energy stored in the vehicle to be used for specific household applications or fed back into the power grid when needed.
“Beyond technological innovation, this partnership provides a concrete response to two major concerns for French consumers: purchasing power and the energy transition,” says Jérôme Faton, Vice President Customer Experience & Energy at Renault Group. “By helping to better manage charging costs and creating new opportunities to unlock value from energy, Renault Group and EDF Group, two French leaders, aim to make electric mobility even more attractive and accessible across the country.”
Christelle Vives, President of EDF Business Services, adds: “This alliance demonstrates how two leading French companies can join forces to advance competitive, sovereign and low-carbon mobility. EDF Group has extensive expertise in smart charging solutions, already deployed by our subsidiary Dreev to more than 100,000 customers across France and Europe. By combining innovative energy technologies and services tailored to consumers’ needs, Renault Group and EDF Group are helping strengthen a national industrial ecosystem that creates value, jobs and innovation.”