I'm Ford's global director of sustainability, and I think EVs could strengthen, not strain, the power grid

Cynthia Williams is the global director of sustainability, homologation, and compliance at
Ford Motor Co.
Cynthia Williams

Power outages due to grid strain have more than doubled every year since the early 2000s.
Ford is supporting grid resiliency through innovation in the vehicle-to-grid space.
This could help mitigate energy shortfalls during peak usage hours when the power grid is strained.
This article is part of “Gains in Green Tech,” a series showcasing some of the most transformative solutions to the climate crisis. For more climate-action news, visit Insider’s One Planet hub. 

We’ve reached the tipping point for the transportation industry’s advancement toward electrification — and it’s the most exhilarating and rewarding time of my 31-year career working in sustainability at Ford Motor Co. 

Though the challenges that come with a transition to electric-vehicle transportation are considerable, they bring with them vast potential for positive change, both to our environment and to public health at large. 

One question I get asked is how our electric-power-grid infrastructure could possibly keep up with the added demand of millions of EVs charging every day. While the answer isn’t simple, Ford is introducing solutions to turn this grid anxiety into grid confidence.

Power outages due to grid strain have more than doubled every year since the early 2000s, the Associated Press reported in April 2022. Experts say that while electric vehicles today are a small factor in grid strain, they have the potential to be a significant burden on electricity needs. 

As a global mobility company gearing up for the electric-vehicle revolution, we think carefully about this issue, as we aim to sell 2 million EVs globally by 2026. As part of that planning, we’ve worked with public utilities to come up with technology that supports grid resiliency through innovation in the vehicle-to-grid space, also known as bidirectional charging. 

The power of V2G

We are working on turning every Ford EV into a virtual power plant that can be part of a collective power-grid solution. Unlike traditional gas-powered vehicles, EVs have massive batteries that store energy for power. But because we don’t drive all day every day, we have an opportunity to connect our customers and public utilities to use the stored energy in EV batteries to help power homes, worksites, and more — and, in time, give power back directly to the grid. 

This solution could help mitigate energy shortfalls during peak usage hours when the power grid would be strained. Ford’s industry-first Intelligent Backup Power, which can connect an F-150 Lightning to a home’s electricity system to provide power for up to 10 days in an outage, is laying the groundwork for new possibilities of energy management.

We’re not alone in developing V2G technology, and we applaud the other vehicle manufacturers and charging startups around the world also working to put V2G in the hands of EV customers. And there’s a role for government too in helping to create the conditions for innovation to succeed. Collaboration and cooperation are key to V2G realizing its potential at scale.

To accelerate our work in the V2G space, Ford is one of the founding members of the Virtual Power Plant Partnership, an initiative aimed at catalyzing the industry and transforming policies to support the scaling of virtual power plants. This extension of EV capability is something our team at Ford is thinking about every day to create a more-sustainable energy future that supports customers and communities.

Ford’s collaborations with Duke Energy and Pacific Gas and Electric are great examples of how V2G technology can revolutionize the way we consume and distribute energy. We are conducting trials that explore the capabilities of bidirectional charging infrastructure that would support the grid, while providing financial incentives to our EV drivers — essentially building a safety net for our nation’s power grid by using stored energy from EV batteries.

While the challenges of EV adoption and grid strain are real, the solution lies in integrating technology such as V2G, coupled with collaborative efforts among automakers, utility companies, and policymakers.

We’re doing our part at Ford to make these solutions realities — for both the power grid and our customers.

Cynthia Williams is a member of the One Planet advisory council. Learn more about her work here.