In a move that is bound to bode well for electric car users, Tesla Motors have partnered up with the Pacific Gas and Electric Corporation to explore vehicle-to-grid technologies.

Advanced Remote Car Charging (or smart charging) allows remote control of the charging systems of electric vehicles that are plugged into the local power grid, allowing the local power utility to essentially use them as remote controlled electrical storage devices. The concept will also function for plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). Under this system, vehicles will not be returning power to the grids, but the utilities can control their rate of charging to best suit the operations of the power grid at that time, and to match the charging load to available resources (which would work much better with intermittent energy flows from renewable resources such as wind or solar power).

Currently Tesla is equipping one of their Roadsters for smart charging demonstration purposes at their location in San Carlos, California. Tesla’s aim is to help provide proof of the smart charging concept, so that their customers can hopefully get the option of reducing their power costs by adjusting their charging patters while at the same time encouraging greater penetration of renewable resources.

PG&E has stated that they hope to expand the program and integrate it with their SmartMeter technology which rewards consumers who use less electric power in peak usage times. This will further improve the cost efficiency of electric vehicles.