A groundbreaking electric vehicle (EV) charger supplied by Indra is part of an eco-friendly homebuilding project that was featured in last night’s episode (16 Oct 2024) of TV’s Grand Designs programme.
Tony Searby, who stars in the latest episode, embarked on a mission to build a sustainable eco home on the former site of his childhood home in Henley-on-Thames. He chose to integrate Indra’s bidirectional Electric Vehicle charging technology into his home set-up.
Tony is one of over 200 people across the UK who have been provided with the innovative EV charger as part of what is billed as the world’s largest trial of the technology.
Whilst footage of the bidirectional EV charger didn't make the final cut of the episode, the charger is an important part of Tony's aim to put sustainability at the project's heart. The Indra bidirectional EV charger enables Tony to both charge his electric vehicle and use electricity stored in his car's battery to power his home.
The charger is one of a suite of sustainable technologies that Tony has incorporated into the two-storey timber-clad building. Other eco-features include a large solar array, a mechanical ventilation heat recovery system, battery storage, rainwater harvesting and triple glazing.
Run and funded by UK company Indra, the trial is part of a multi-year project aiming to explore how bidirectional electric vehicle technology can most successfully be rolled out as part of the move towards zero emission motoring.
Recent early figures released by Indra from the trial suggest trialists like Tony anticipate annual savings in energy bills of anywhere between £400 and £1,200 per year.
Commenting on his experience so far, Tony said:
"I’m a huge advocate for the work Indra is doing into bidirectional charging, and I think the concept of a Vehicle-to-home (V2H) charger is fantastic."
"The ability to use electricity at off-peak times or from solar and to store this in my car's battery for later use is groundbreaking and provides a significant value to many. As a homeowner, the potential cost-savings are a huge win, and the benefit to the environment is a key reason why I signed up in the first place."
“I am already recommending the V2H charger to my friends and family, as I truly believe this technology holds a lot of importance for the future of our grid and our planet.”
In the video below, Tony discusses more about his decision to include Indra's innovative EV charging technology in his eco house project.
John Fox, Chief Technology Officer at Indra, added:
We’re thrilled that our innovative EV charging technology is being incorporated into high profile building projects such as Tony’s eco-home and that more people will get to hear about its potential thanks to the coverage gained by the house being featured on TV’s Grand Designs. This technology not only enables zero emission motoring, but also supports zero emission heating and home energy use too, multiplying the benefits of Electric Vehicles and turning them into an asset to the grid."
"We are also delighted to hear Tony’s positive feedback – we were honoured to be part of Tony’s journey as he built his dream home."
“Tony is one of 200 people on our trial of this tech and we’re already seeing great results. We’re not just securing huge benefits for trialists but are also collecting valuable data which will help us inform and improve our products as we aim to roll out bidirectional charging on a larger scale in the future.”
To learn more about how Indra is pushing the boundaries of EV charging technology head over to the Innovations section of our website.
