Maryland’s Bi-Directional Charging Law

Maryland’s Distributed Renewable Integration and Vehicle Electrification Act (“DRIVE Act”) creates a bidirectional EV charging program. The program requires the Public Service Commission to put forward new regulations aimed at allowing EVs to both draw power from and supply power to the electric grid. The DRIVE Act also allows for the creation of virtual power plants (VPPs), which aggregate distributed energy resources, such as solar arrays and electric vehicles, to support the grid and act as traditional power plants during peak demand.

As bidirectional-capable EVs and solar-plus-storage resources become more common across Maryland, the DRIVE Act could help reduce the need for new transmission and distribution infrastructure in the state and throughout the congested PJM Interconnection region.