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Groupe PSA, Direct Energie, Enel, Nuvve, Proxiserve and the Technical University of Denmark have launched the GridMotion project with the aim of evaluating possible savings achieved by real-life electric vehicle (EV) users through the implementation of smart charging and discharging strategies for EVs.
An electric driver’s electricity bill could be reduced, with no impact on transportation use, by shifting charging times from periods when electricity prices are higher to periods when electricity prices are lower. Even further savings could be achieved by providing grid balancing services through a Vehicle to Grid (V2G) system.

GridMotion partners have just combined their complementary expertise to launch a 2-year demo project. The project is intended to evaluate the savings EV users could achieve under real-life conditions with the implementation of smart charging and discharging¹

The project will be carried out with two complementary types of users:
- 50 Peugeot iOn, Partner Electric, Citroën C-ZERO or Berlingo owners will test “smart” unidirectional charging, in line with their mobility needs, when electricity prices are generally lower, such as night-time in France;
- a fleet of 15 B2B EV Peugeot iOn or Citroën C-ZERO vehicles with Enel bidirectional charging stations testing “smart” charging and discharging (V2G services). This fleet will provide grid balancing services through short charging and discharging  cycles, again carried out in line with mobility needs. Charging is expected to be carried out when there is surplus electricity supply on the grid, while discharging is expected to be carried out when there is surplus electricity demand on the grid.

Project partners are looking for volunteers to start the experiment. Participants should be based in France and own a Peugeot or Citroën electric vehicle produced from January 2015 onwards.
The role of each partner is detailed below:
• Groupe PSA  is in charge of recruiting customers and managing the project;
• Direct Energie will act as an aggregator towards RTE²  and will make bids in the electricity and reserve markets by taking advantage of EV battery flexibility;
• Nuvve will be in charge of controlling the charging/discharging patterns of electric vehicles;
• Enel will provide the bidirectional charging stations and its expertise in smart grids;
• Proxiserve will install the B2C and B2B charging stations;
• DTU will provide academic support and testing systems.

Plug-in vehicle (PEV) sales grew by 42% between 2015 and 2016 worldwide³ . This growth, fostered by technological improvements, falling prices and increasing pressure on air pollution, is expected to accelerate in the coming years. The GridMotion project is seeking to demonstrate how PEVs harness demand response and ancillary services to have a beneficial impact on grid stability and user income.

 
Contact Information
If you are interested in joining the project, please contact us at: GridMotionProject@mpsa.com

​• Establishes PSA Group as #2 in Europe. This strong and balanced presence in its home markets will serve as the basis of profitable growth worldwide
• Joint venture in auto financing with BNP Paribas to support development of Opel/Vauxhall brands
• €2.2 Bn transaction advances GM’s transformation and unlocks shareholder value through disciplined capital allocation

Detroit and Paris, 6 March 2017 – General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM) and PSA Group (Paris:UG) today announced an agreement under which GM’s Opel/Vauxhall subsidiary and GM Financial’s European operations will join the PSA Group in a transaction valuing these activities at €1.3 Bn and €0.9 Bn, respectively.

With the addition of Opel/Vauxhall, which generated revenue of €17.7 Bn in 2016 , PSA will become the second-largest automotive company in Europe, with a 17% market share .

Creates sound European foundation for PSA to support its worldwide profitable growth

“We are proud to join forces with Opel/Vauxhall and are deeply committed to continuing to develop this great company and accelerating its turnaround,” said Carlos Tavares, chairman of the Managing Board of PSA. “We respect all that Opel/Vauxhall’s talented people have achieved as well as the company’s fine brands and strong heritage. We intend to manage PSA and Opel/Vauxhall capitalizing on their respective brand identities. Having already created together winning products for the European market, we know that Opel/Vauxhall is the right partner. We see this as a natural extension of our relationship and are eager to take it to the next level.”

“We are confident that the Opel/Vauxhall turnaround will significantly accelerate with our support, while respecting the commitments made by GM to the Opel/Vauxhall employees,” continued Mr. Tavares.

Advances GM’s Transformation and Unlocks Value

“We are very pleased that together, GM, our valued colleagues at Opel/Vauxhall and PSA have created a new opportunity to enhance the long-term performance of our respective companies by building on the success of our prior alliance”, said Mary T. Barra, GM chairman and chief executive officer.

“For GM, this represents another major step in the ongoing work that is driving our improved performance and accelerating our momentum. We are reshaping our company and delivering consistent, record results for our owners through disciplined capital allocation to our higher-return investments in our core automotive business and in new technologies that are enabling us to lead the future of personal mobility.

“We believe this new chapter puts Opel and Vauxhall in an even stronger position for the long term and we look forward to our participation in the future success and strong value-creation potential of PSA through our economic interest and continued collaboration on current and exciting new projects,” Ms. Barra concluded.

Strengthens Each Company for the Long Term

The transaction will allow substantial economies of scale and synergies in purchasing, manufacturing and R&D. Annual synergies of €1.7 Bn are expected by 2026 – of which a significant part is expected to be delivered by 2020, accelerating Opel/Vauxhall’s turnaround. Leveraging the successful partnership with GM, PSA expects Opel/Vauxhall to reach a recurring operating margin  of 2% by 2020 and 6% by 2026, and to generate a positive operational free cash flow  by 2020.

PSA, together with BNP Paribas, will also acquire all of GM Financial’s European operations through a newly formed 50%/50% joint venture that will retain GM Financial’s current European platform and team. This joint venture will be fully consolidated by BNP Paribas and accounted under the equity method by PSA.

The transaction is another step in GM’s ongoing work to transform the company, which has delivered three years of record performance and a strong 2017 outlook, and returned significant capital to shareholders. It will strengthen GM’s core business, support its continued deployment of resources to higher-return opportunities including in advanced technologies driving the future, and unlock significant value for shareholders.

By immediately improving EBIT-adjusted, EBIT-adjusted margins and adjusted automotive free cash flow and de-risking the balance sheet, the transaction will enable GM to lower the cash balance requirement under its capital allocation framework by $2 Bn, which it intends to use to accelerate share repurchases, subject to market conditions.

GM will also participate in the future success of the combined entity through its ownership of warrants to purchase shares of PSA. GM and PSA also expect to collaborate in the further deployment of electrification technologies and existing supply agreements for Holden and certain Buick models will continue, and PSA may potentially source long-term supply of fuel cell systems from the GM/Honda joint venture.