How Bidirectional Charging Can Protect India's Grid Stability in the Wake of Accelerated EV Adoption

The adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable energy generation is accelerating worldwide and India is a part of this shift. As per VAHAN Dashboard, Telangana RTO, EV sales in India have grown over 11.5 times since FY2020, and by end of FY ‘25 India is expecting around 6.2m Evs on the roads. Meanwhile, a similar surge in EV use in the United States has prompted its Department of Energy to project a 20–50% increase in national electricity consumption for EV charging by 2050.

Millions of EVs = Grid Strain?

While this transition is exciting, it comes with new challenges. As millions of EVs plug into the grid at unpredictable times and locations, we will soon face increased strain on distribution infrastructure and will need to manage fluctuating energy supply and demand more intelligently.
Bidirectional charging is a technology that allows hundreds of thousands of EVs to transfer power back to the grid. Engineers are exploring  innovative technology that enables electric vehicles to share their stored energy with the grid. This allows thousands of EVs to send power back during peak demand. 

It is a powerful grid protection solution that is sitting right in our parking lots. A fully charged EV battery often holds far more energy than is required on a daily basis. Every EV, as a result, has the capacity to become a flexible, mobile energy storage unit. 

Enter Bidirectional Charging

Bidirectional charging technologies with their Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) and Vehicle-to-Home (V2H) capabilities do just that. They tap into this potential by enabling EVs not only to draw power from the grid but also support grid stability during peak demand.
However, managing these dynamic power systems is complex. It requires two key capabilities: enabling a two-way power flow between EVs and the grid and, more importantly, predicting the overall electrical load and the time ranges when EVs are expected to connect to the grid. To do that, engineers are required to rely on bidirectional power converters and simulation-based technology development.

Developing Bidirectional Power Converters

Using an EV battery as a storage unit requires a bidirectional power converter that permits electricity flow and a digital control system that manages device switching to regulate voltage and current. These components enable the converter to achieve the required power flow between the battery and the power system. 
For their development, design engineers typically use end-user behavioral models on a desktop computer to simulate the battery, power converter and its control algorithms, and grid connection. The value of simulation models lies in their ability to accurately represent the technology’s behavior in development and address engineering challenges at each stage of the development process. 
Desktop simulation can also be used to evaluate the response of grid-connected charging stations, evaluate compliance against grid codes, and develop predictive maintenance algorithms that improve system uptime.
Integrating bidirectional power converters into the power system is only part of the challenge. To ensure that large-scale deployment of EVs and bidirectional power converters will not compromise grid stability or reliability, engineers must determine how these systems interact with the grid under a wide range of operating conditions. Engineers employ an essential tool for evaluating component and grid-level performance: system-level simulation studies.

Evaluating EV Charging’s Impact on the Grid

Assessing the impact of EV charging on grid response requires detailed power system simulation studies, which can be performed using Model-Based Design. Lumen Freedom, a world leading manufacturer of Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging systems, recently developed wireless charging systems with built-in flexibility to meet future needs. Creating models for the communications systems, power electronics, and state machine enabled engineers to simulate the system’s operation. Engineers used MATLAB® and Simulink® to design the core software models, main logic for the entire system, and the communication controller, which manages communication between the vehicle and charging pad.  

India’s Readiness in V2G Transition

Engineers from across the world are at different stages of planning and implementing this technology. Japan and parts of Europe are already conducting commercial V2G pilots linked with renewable energy systems. The United States is also expanding trials across utilities, corporate campuses, and residential communities.
India is in the early stages of this transition, but not far behind. The foundation is slowly taking shape. What’s also helping is the country’s fast-growing EV market as smart city initiatives continue to provide strong momentum. However, to scale V2G successfully, India will need to address challenges such as grid readiness in high-density urban areas, standardized communication protocols for bidirectional chargers, home and workplace charging availability, especially in shared parking environments, commercial viability and, above all, suitable incentives for EV owners to supply energy back to the grid.
With the right policies, pilots, and industry-utility collaboration, India can adopt V2G as part of its broader grid modernization efforts.