Iconic school bus manufacturer Blue Bird has delivered an electric school bus equipped with V2G (vehicle-to-grid) technology from Nuvve, one of two Blue Bird Type C electric buses delivered to two school districts in Illinois. The e-buses are powered by the Cummins PowerDrive EV system.

Nuvve’s V2G platform allows the bus batteries to store energy, allowing fleets to sell energy to local utilities at times of peak demand. The system can also be used to supply energy to the school and to intelligently charge the buses during non-peak hours to reduce utility demand charges.

Both school districts are members of the Bus-2-Grid Initiative, which helps Illinois school districts leverage V2G revenue opportunities and secure grant funding to electrify their fleets. The two districts are currently adding charging infrastructure to support their new zero-emissions buses, which were paid for by an electric bus grant from the Edwards Coal-Fired Plant Settlement.

Hollis Consolidated School District’s latest e-bus purchase makes the district’s fleet 100% electric. “The benefits are far and wide with our Blue Bird electric bus,” said District Superintendent Chad Jones. “Compared with diesel, service requirements are significantly reduced, and we are providing 100% green transportation for our students.”

“Our system allows electric school buses to perform to their fullest potential by providing grid services when plugged in and charging,” said Gregory Poilasne, CEO of Nuvve. “This reduces load on the grid and will make emergency back-up power from buses a reality in the near future. With our partners at Blue Bird, we’re on a mission to make the electrification of school buses more affordable and efficient, and our V2G platform positions us to do that.”

“With more than 400 Blue Bird electric school buses already delivered or on order, districts across the UD are quickly learning how easy and affordable it is to adopt this cleaner, safer solution for students,” said Trevor Rudderham, Senior VP of Electrification and Product Planning at ‎Blue Bird. “As the leader in this market, we’ve been able to learn, adjust and implement rapidly to improve on what is already a great performance by our electric buses.”

Source: Blue Bird