Ava Community Energy has launched an innovative program in California aimed at incentivizing electric vehicle (EV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) owners to charge their vehicles during periods of cleaner and cheaper electricity.
Dubbed the Ava SmartHome Charging program, this initiative is a collaboration with energy analytics platform Optiwatt and promises its users up to $100 in incentives during their first year of participation.
The initiative encourages drivers to charge their vehicles when demand is low, typically during off-peak hours, thus maximizing the use of renewable energy sources.
Get Paid to Charge: Ava’s New Program Offers Up to $100 for Clean Energy Usage
This strategic scheduling has been shown to save participants around $140 annually on their energy bills. EV and PHEV owners who are already customers of Ava can easily join the program by downloading the Optiwatt app, which integrates seamlessly with their vehicles.
Upon enrollment, drivers receive an immediate $75 bonus and can earn an additional $25 each year for continued participation. The app’s advanced algorithm ensures that charging aligns with the consumer’s individual schedules while prioritizing times when renewable energy is more abundant.
According to Ava’s CEO Howard Chang, this initiative is a step toward the company’s goal of providing 100% clean energy to customers by 2030.
Optiwatt’s founder, Casey Donahue, emphasized the benefits of the program, stating that it allows for a significant shift in energy consumption to cleaner periods, while accommodating the growing base of electric vehicles.
Ava Community Energy, a not-for-profit organization formed in 2018, aims to enroll at least 5,000 vehicles by the end of 2025. This program is seen as a foundational element in a broader virtual power plant strategy, powered by Lunar Energy’s Distributed Energy Resource Management System.