General Motors has unveiled its latest venture into the home energy market with the release of its initial lineup of products, which includes tools to transform GM-made electric vehicles into portable power sources for homes. Among the offerings are a home EV charger and a vehicle-to-home (V2H) kit, allowing households to tap into the energy stored in their EV batteries during blackouts. Initially, these products are only available to customers residing in California, Florida, Texas, Michigan, and New York, with plans for expansion to more states in the near future.

The core of the package consists of the GM Energy Powershift Charger priced at $1,699 and the GM Energy V2H Enablement Kit at $5,600, totaling $7,299. Installation expenses and taxes are not included and will vary based on various factors. GM has partnered with Qmerit, a home EV charging installer, to assist interested customers by providing customized price estimates depending on location and energy usage.

Presently, only one of GM’s electric vehicles, the 2024 Chevy Silverado EV RST, supports bidirectional charging, boasting a 200kWh battery capable of supplying up to 10.2kW of offboard energy, sufficient to power an entire house for 21 days. While the Silverado EV comes with bidirectional charging capability as standard, other GM EVs such as the GMC Sierra EV Denali, Chevy Equinox and Blazer EVs, and Cadillac Lyriq will require over-the-air software updates or manual updates at dealerships to gain this functionality. GM has announced that all its EVs will feature bidirectional charging as standard by 2026, although “properly equipped homes” and grid interconnection may be prerequisites.

The concept behind bidirectional charging is to leverage high-capacity lithium-ion batteries not only for powering EVs but also as backup storage cells to charge other electric devices, homes, or even to contribute energy to the electrical grid, potentially leading to energy savings. With heatwaves caused by climate change increasingly straining electric grids, the ability to draw and distribute power from EVs during peak demand periods becomes crucial. This trend is mirrored in the growing number of EVs supporting bidirectional charging, including models from Hyundai, Kia, Volvo, Nissan, and the anticipated inclusion in Tesla’s lineup by 2025.

GM’s foray into the home energy market began in 2022 with the launch of GM Energy, aimed at competing in the rapidly expanding sector, estimated at $150 billion. Beyond the initial offerings, GM plans to introduce additional equipment like stationary home batteries and solar panels to rival competitors like Tesla in this burgeoning market.