The Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) announced the participants in a first-of-its-kind Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) Demonstration program focused on integrating electric vehicles (EVs) into grid operations.
Selected school districts, residents, and municipal projects will receive bi-directional EV chargers at no cost. The program is designed to evaluate how V2X technologies can support grid reliability, reduce peak energy demand, and lower electricity costs while advancing EV adoption across Massachusetts.
Bi-directional charging allows EV batteries to both draw power from and return power to the grid or to buildings. This capability enables EVs (including electric school buses and municipal fleet vehicles) to provide backup power during outages and supply electricity during periods of high demand.
By using EVs as distributed energy storage assets, the program is expected to deliver more than one megawatt of power back to the grid during a demand response event, roughly equivalent to the hourly electricity use of 300 average US homes.
All bi-directional charging systems are expected to be installed and operational by summer 2026, with data collection continuing throughout the year. Findings from the program will inform a V2X Guidebook scheduled for release in late 2026, addressing system design, costs, charging management, and technical and regulatory considerations to support broader replication and scaling of V2X deployments.
The program addresses a key barrier to V2X adoption by providing and installing infrastructure at no cost to participants across income levels. Participants will also be supported in enrolling in existing utility programs that compensate EV owners for supplying power back to the grid during peak demand periods. These measures are intended to reduce grid strain while improving the economic case for EV ownership and fleet electrification.
Program participants include:
School districts:
- Acton-Boxborough Regional School District
- Arlington Public Schools
- Boston Public Schools
- Concord Public Schools
- Lincoln Public Schools
Municipal projects:
- Sterling Municipal Light Department
- Town of Needham
- Town of Plymouth
- Town of Warwick
Residential participants:
-
30 residents statewide, with more than one-third of program funding supporting participants in environmental justice communities.
Funding for the program is provided by the Healey–Driscoll Administration’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Coordinating Council (EVICC) through a $50 million allocation from the American Rescue Plan Act to support EV charging initiatives across the Commonwealth.
EVICC is responsible for developing and implementing statewide EV charging infrastructure deployment strategies, informed by biennial assessments. The most recent assessment was released in August 2025.
For additional information on the Vehicle-to-Everything Demonstration program, click here.
Filed Under: Charging, Technology News, Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G)