A new ERTICO- ITS Europe coordinated project, ePowerMove, has started to advance the EU’s mission to decarbonise transport through electrification. Launched under the 2Zero partnership, the project focuses on innovative vehicle-to-grid (V2G) solutions to support the widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). With a focus on smart, slow-charging strategies, ePowerMove aims to enhance grid efficiency while providing tailored charging solutions for diverse societal groups, ensuring accessibility and inclusivity in the transition to sustainable mobility.
The ePowerMove project will design flexible, scalable, and interoperable bidirectional smart and slow-charging solutions that adapt to diverse regional power systems and evolve with technology and policy, reducing infrastructure costs while being less intrusive. This adaptability is key to ensuring mass adoption while maintaining compatibility with future advancements in electromobility.
The project goes beyond technological innovation by addressing the socio-cultural aspects of EV adoption. It includes the development of comprehensive databases at city, regional, and national levels in the three pilot countries that capture daily charging habits, preferences, and needs of diverse community clusters—including individuals with special needs. These insights will be integrated into planning tools and charging solutions, ensuring they are tailored to the unique requirements of different communities.
Apart from the bidirectional charging solutions, other key innovations in the project are user-friendly mobile apps that simplify access and optimise the charging process and less intrusive on-street charging options that integrate seamlessly into urban environments while ensuring accessibility and minimising public space impact.
“By addressing both technological and socio-cultural dimensions, the project ensures that smart charging infrastructure adapts to diverse community needs while enhancing grid efficiency and promoting renewable energy integration”, says Farzam Far Mehrnaz, Senior Scientist at VTT and ePowerMove technical coordinator.
ePowerMove will demonstrate the potential of bidirectional, slow charging across three cities, each focusing on distinct aspects of innovation. In Helsinki, the pilot will showcase low-cost, non-intrusive bidirectional AC charging solutions designed for Nordic conditions, demonstrating mass adoption in the urban area of Ruoholahti with over 40 dedicated parking spots featuring 11 kW bi-directional kerbside chargers and Type 2 connectors. The Klagenfurt pilot will demonstrate the integration of V2G-capable vehicles in a multimodal hub, testing low-power, smart bi-directional charging and its impact on grid stability through innovative public AC charging points and will explore new business models. The Nicosia pilot will demonstrate a synergetic framework to intelligently co-manage the distribution grid and bi-directional EV charging, aiming to reduce grid congestion, lower charging costs, and boost RES utilization, all within the University of Cyprus campus area.
Emin Aliyev, ERTICO Innovation & Deployment Manager and the proposal developer and now Innovation Manager of the project noted that “bringing together unique pilots, diverse partners, and crafting a cohesive solution was a significant challenge during the proposal stage. However, the project will undoubtedly excite many as it offers a cost-effective solution that reduces infrastructure demands while enabling EVs to contribute to the grid, ultimately making energy systems smarter and more sustainable on a global scale”.
ERTICO’s strategic role in driving greener mobility
ERTICO is driving technological innovation for greener, more sustainable mobility that meets user requirements, inclusivity, and societal needs. The coordination of the ePowerMove project is a key step toward achieving transport decarbonisation, complementing our involvement in other EU projects such as ZEV-UP, NextETRUCK, eCharge4Drivers and LeMesurier under the 2Zero partnership. As a member of EGVIAfor2Zero, ERTICO supports the ambitious goal of halving conventionally fuelled cars by 2030 and phasing them out entirely by 2050, advancing the transition to climate-neutral mobility.
Project coordinator Andrew Winder said: “This is the latest step on ERTICO’s journey linking Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) and smart mobility with electrification in the road sector, to bring about greener transport. Recent and current activities have covered dynamic charging, interoperability, user perspectives, as well as specific projects focusing on light EVs, e-trucks, e-BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) and frugal EVs. ePowerMove completes the picture, looking at cost and user aspects as well as technological innovation, to maximise user buy-in and take-up of smart charging services.”
ERTICO partners, including the University of Leeds – Institute for Transport Studies, AVERE, VTT – Technical Research Centre of Finland, and the University of Cyprus – KIOS Centre of Excellence, collaborate on this ambitious project, as key work-package leaders. Together, we will deliver cleaner, greener, and more resilient climate-neutral mobility solutions, ensuring that innovation remains user-centric and impactful.
