Has Vehicle-to-Grid Reached the Tipping Point?

Bidirectional EV charging has long been talked about as a future solution for balancing renewable power systems. Now, it’s starting to move into real-world deployment – and 2026 could mark a turning point.

In this episode of The smarter E podcast, we explore how vehicle-to-grid (V2G) is shifting from policy discussions and pilot projects into commercial rollouts across Europe.

We begin with a policy perspective, speaking with Adriana Fricke, Senior Manager Public Affairs from Hubject — an organization working at the intersection of e-mobility, regulation, and energy systems. With billions already invested in the EV ecosystem, policymakers and industry are working to align standards, regulations, and business models to support bidirectional charging at scale. The potential impact is huge – lower grid costs, improved energy security, and EVs acting as mobile storage assets that can support households and the wider power system.

In the second part of the episode, we shift from policy to real-world deployment, speaking with Robin Berg, the Founder and CEO of We Drive Solar. Large-scale bidirectional EV fleets are now being rolled out in the Netherlands, showcasing how parked vehicles can act as distributed energy storage, and help manage grid congestion during winter demand peaks or absorb excess solar generation during high production periods.

As fleets scale from dozens to hundreds of vehicles, they are offering a real-world blueprint for how V2G could support increasingly electrified energy systems.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why policy clarity and standardization are critical to scaling bidirectional charging
• How EVs are evolving from transport assets into grid-connected energy infrastructure
• The potential system cost savings and resilience benefits of V2G
• Why fleets could become the first major commercial use case for bidirectional charging
• How V2G can help manage both winter demand spikes and summer solar oversupply
• Why 2026 could be remembered as a key deployment year for V2G in Europe

Adriana Fricke is the Senior Manager, Public Affairs, at Hubject, where she leads the company’s public policy initiatives for EU affairs, ensuring alignment across member states.

Before joining Hubject, Adriana gained extensive experience in public affairs, working at the interface between the public and private sectors with a special focus on electric mobility, energy, and climate policies.

Robin Berg is a entrepreneur and innovator based in the city of Utrecht, the Netherlands. In 2003, Robin invested in a roll-out for high speed wireless and glassfiber internet in the district of Lombok (2.000 houses).

Since 1999, Robin invested in solar power generation. In 2008, he installed solar power plants on 25 school roofs in Utrecht and interconnecting some off them to EV-chargers at one of the first private grids in the country. This lead in 2016 in the establishment of the company We Drive Solar of which Robin is CEO. We Drive Solar has realized several international firsts in the field of bidirectional charging in collaboration with carmakers like Nissan, Hyundai and Renault. Together with local and international partners We Drive Solar aims to make Utrecht the first bidirectional city in the world.