By Aseem Kapur, chief revenue officer, GM Energy
General Motors has joined Pacific Gas & Electric’s residential Vehicle-to-Everything pilot program, providing eligible customers in Northern and Central California with incentivized pricing for qualifying GM Energy home energy products.
GM Energy is working with utilities like PG&E to leverage GM’s bidirectional electric vehicle charging technology, which allows compatible GM EVs to supply power back to homes during outages and, in the future, to support the grid by helping balance energy demand, with the goal of ultimately improving overall grid resiliency.
Customers enrolled in the PG&E Vehicle-to-Everything pilot program can receive up to $4,500 in incentives off the price of qualifying GM Energy home products that enable bidirectional charging, such as the GM Energy V2H Bundle or Home System. Customers may also be eligible for additional incentives by participating in planned backup power events and by maintaining enrollment through the end of the pilot program. Customers must also be enrolled in PG&E’s Emergency Load Reduction Program and will have the option to stop charging their EV during ELRP events to earn additional incentives.
“For Northern California customers looking to take more control of their home energy, this program with PG&E represents a great opportunity,” said GM Energy Vice President Wade Sheffer. “For utilities, legislators, customers and others, this pilot is an opportunity to see the full value of our V2H technology beyond just providing power to a home during power outages. This can be a tool that helps overall grid resiliency and showcases the unique advantages of EVs, while in the future, potentially reducing the total cost of EV ownership.”
Charging data from the program will help PG&E and GM Energy evaluate the potential for bidirectional technology to provide value to customers, support grid resiliency, and help scale system adoption in California.
“PG&E is leading the way to enable vehicle-grid-integration technology, creating a path for EVs to power customer homes, ultimately benefiting all Californians,” said Mike Delaney, VP. utility partnerships and innovation, PG&E. “We are proud to continue leading this electric renaissance as we collaborate with automakers and some of the world’s top innovators to pioneer bidirectional charging technology where EVs have the potential to offer greater reliability, resiliency and cost savings.”
GM EVs eligible for the program at the time of launch include the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV, 2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV, 2024 Chevrolet Blazer EV, 2024 Cadillac Lyriq EV, 2024 GMC Sierra, and 2025 Cadillac Lyriq EV. GM anticipates adding all model year 2025 EVs to the pilot program soon.
To learn more about the pilot program or how to enroll, please visit GM Energy Enrollment Portal.
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About GM
General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.
About PG&E
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE: PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than sixteen million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit pge.com and pge.com/news
Today, General Motors announced it is offering eligible GM electric vehicle owners the opportunity to enroll in phase one of the Northern California utility Pacific Gas & Electric's Vehicle-to-Everything pilot program. By enrolling, customers can receive up to $4,500 in incentives off the price of GM Energy bidirectional home charging equipment.
This pilot program is a glimpse into the future of energy resilience, efficiency, and sustainability – and GM Energy is working alongside leading utilities like PG&E to lead the conversation nationally.
By unlocking bidirectional charging for Vehicle-to-Home applications, GM and PG&E are demonstrating that electric vehicles can be more than just a mode of transportation. The product experience and the value for customers does not end when a GM EV is parked. The value keeps going without the customer needing to interact with the vehicle at all.
We call this the all-electric lifestyle.
Today, GM Energy’s 19.2 kW bidirectional PowerShift charger and V2H Bundle enable Vehicle-to-Home functionality, allowing compatible GM EVs to provide backup power to properly equipped homes during outages.
Using the learnings from the pilot, GM and PG&E can fine-tune the customer experience, ensuring bidirectional-capable vehicles can seamlessly integrate into the grid and be beneficial for overall grid resilience.
While giving customers the ability to use their GM EV as a back-up home generator is an incredible, practical benefit to customers, it is just the beginning of what we can do to help encourage mass EV adoption with this technology.
Looking ahead at the future, the PG&E collaboration can help set the stage for broader Vehicle-to-Grid applications – electric vehicle batteries sending power back to the grid during times of peak energy demand.
Imagine thousands of EVs plugged in and ready to provide energy back to the grid when it’s needed most — during heat waves, storms, or other demand spikes. This virtual power plant distributed energy resource can alleviate pressure on the grid, helping to prevent blackouts and stabilize energy supply and potentially lower costs across the market.
With the right incentives and policies in place, programs like this one could accelerate the shift toward a more distributed energy model. As other states explore ways to meet renewable energy targets, Vehicle-to-Home, Vehicle-to-Grid and VPP technology offer a powerful solution that can help reduce strain on power plants, enhance the use of solar energy, and give consumers more control over their energy costs in the future.
The PG&E pilot is just the beginning. GM Energy is working with utilities and aggregators across the country to explore how EVs can enhance grid resilience, energy security, and ultimately EV adoption. As we continue to innovate and expand our bidirectional charging and energy management capabilities, we are laying the groundwork for a future where EVs are not just vehicles but vital components of a cleaner, more reliable energy system.
The future of energy is decentralized, flexible, and powered by collaborations like this one. Through this pilot, GM and PG&E are showing that the promise of bidirectional and V2G technology is not a distant vision.
It is happening right now.
And as we scale these solutions, we are driving toward a world where our vehicles do more than take us from place to place. They help power the future.