Nuvve and Blue Bird announce availability of nationwide Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) School Bus offer
Nuvve Corporation, a San Diego-based, green energy technology company and the global leader in vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology, and Blue Bird Corporation, the leading independent designer and manufacturer of school buses, announced the availability of Blue Bird’s Vision Type C and All American Type D electric school buses enabled with Nuvve’s V2G technology.
Both Blue Bird bus types are now equipped with a standard CCS connector capable of V2G charging and discharging of the 155kWh batteries that allow up to 120 miles of range on a single charge. With Nuvve’s latest V2G 60kW DC CCS charging station, the buses can be fully charged in approximately three hours. This charging solution fully complies with new V2G interconnection regulations and meets UL-1741-SA certification requirements specifically mandated for California V2G installations.
Blue Bird has taken a lead role in the deployment of electric school buses across the nation, delivering its 100th electric school bus in April of this year. The combination of Blue Bird’s electric school buses and Nuvve’s V2G GIVe™ platform creates a compelling solution for valuable grid services such as frequency regulation and demand response, while also providing “behind-the-meter” savings to the customer. Nuvve’s solution enables electric buses, which are parked most hours of the day, to store energy while connected. This storage essentially turns electric buses into mobile battery resources that can then be aggregated together to act as virtual power plants (VPPs). At times of extreme grid stress, such as during a heatwave, electric buses can be deployed to provide the grid with additional energy capacity to help prevent brownouts, blackouts, or even failure. Nuvve also plans to enable electric buses with emergency back-up power functionality in the future to mitigate the impacts of lost power during wildfires or other natural disasters.
“We now have standard products, both from charging station OEMs and electric bus manufacturers who are reputable market leaders, that will allow us to scale and ramp up V2G installations across the nation,” said Gregory Poilasne, chairman and CEO of Nuvve Corporation. “Electric school buses that are V2G-enabled have the potential to play a critical role to help stabilize the electric grid. We are proud to partner with Blue Bird to provide a cleaner transportation solution for children and a renewable energy storage solution that will help the environment and our communities.”
It is becoming widely known that electric buses maintain a much cleaner environment for kids to travel to school. Combined with Nuvve’s V2G solution, electric bus owners will realize an economic benefit resulting in a lower total cost of ownership since electric buses can offset operating costs when parked by earning grid service revenues. Additionally, during summer months and the current distance-learning scenarios caused by the pandemic, Nuvve’s V2G platform can help balance electric bus batteries and ensure that minimal degradation occurs in idle months, thereby increasing the lifespan of the batteries.
“We believe bringing new cutting-edge technology to the school transportation market is essential so that children can travel in the cleanest, quietest, and safest vehicles on the road,” said Phil Horlock, president and CEO of Blue Bird Corporation. “V2G has the ability to make our electric school buses more affordable to districts and, combined with Nuvve’s experience with utility and grid services, our collaboration will be key to developing the future of clean transportation.”
The new joint offer from Nuvve and Blue Bird is available through Blue Bird’s national dealer network who can provide assistance to districts through the entire electric bus implementation process, including financing of the buses chargers, installation support, fleet management services, and V2G services.
