Conceptualization of Vehicle-to-Grid Contract Types and Their Formalization in Agent-Based Models

Abstract

Fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) have the potential to be used as flexible power plants in future energy systems. To integrate FCEVs through vehicle-to-grid (V2G), agreements are needed between the FCEV owners and the actor that coordinates V2G on behalf of them, usually considered the aggregator. In this paper, we argue that, depending on the purpose of providing V2G and the goal of the system or the aggregator, different types of contracts are needed, not currently considered in the literature. We propose price-based, volume-based, and control-based contracts. Using agent-based modeling and simulation we show how price-based contracts can be applied for selling V2G in the wholesale electricity market and how volume-based contracts can be used for balancing the local energy supply and demand in a microgrid. The models can provide a base to explore strategies in the market and to improve performance in a system highly dependent on V2G.