Electric Farm Vehicles as Reliable Grid Assets
Demonstrate an on-farm mobile microgrid concept using bidirectional electric tractors to support loads during grid outages.
Gridtractor, Inc.
Recipient
Belmont, CA
Recipient Location
13th
Senate District
21st
Assembly District
$1,664,881
Amount Spent
Active
Project Status
Project Update
In 2025, the project achieved significant milestones in software development, hardware iteration, and site preparation. The Gridtractor platform successfully deployed a functional customer dashboard and advanced scheduling system, which now integrates directly with WiseConn irrigation controllers to automate managed charging and avoid peak grid loads. On hardware, the Monarch team finalized the third iteration of the EVSE+, or Monarch Electrical Load Distribution (MELD), AC bidirectional charging system to meet UL requirements and successfully integrated a new bidirectional Onboard Charger (OBC) for both split-phase and three-phase testing. Despite the market exit of several original hardware partners, the project team pivoted by onboarding InCharge as a primary EVSE vendor and started to conduct initial testing with an InCharge DC bidirectional charger. Additionally, compliant electrical designs and permitting were completed for DC bidirectional charging deployments at both Terranova Ranch in Helm and Talley Vineyards in Arroyo Grande, setting the stage for final site commissioning.
The Issue
Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) is nascent, particularly in the agricultural sector. Electric tractors are entering commercial scale production and do not have the onboard capabilities nor the related Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE) and control systems for bidirectional charging to support critical on-farm and rural loads during PSPS events or other reliability and grid management use cases. Development of technology to support and add value to electrification of California’s tractor fleet will accelerate the transition to electric farm vehicles (EFVs) and enable the state to take advantage of more than 2,000 megawatts of existing rural electrical infrastructure for vehicle electrification.
Project Innovation
This project will demonstrate an on-farm mobile microgrid concept, which involves bidirectional charging of EFVs to support loads during outages, participate in demand response, and load shift in response to time of use tariffs. The project will develop high power discharge capabilities for the EFV, integrate bidirectional chargers with on-farm electrical service points, and manage charging and loads in several grid integration use cases.
Project Goals
Develop and demonstrate bidirectional charging capabilities for electric farm vehicles using DC and AC technologies
Develop an app to optimize the use of on-farm electrical systems for irrigation and EFV bidirectional charging.
Test the integrated systems during PSPS events, demand response events, and in response to price signals from the grid.
Project Benefits
The project will enable EFVs to be used as mobile power sources that can be stored in advance of a planned shutoff or deployed at current battery levels during an unplanned outage to provide backup for critical on-farm loads. As a stretch goal, the project will also attempt to control the EFV charge and discharge behavior in response to demand response events and/or in response to price signals from the MIDAS system. These actions will result in the ratepayer benefits of greater electricity reliability, lower costs, and reduced carbon emissions.
Affordability
Affordability
The project will help enable cost-effective electrification of EFV and manage EFV charge and discharge behavior in ways that benefit the grid.
Reliability
Reliability
The project will result in greater electricity reliability in agricultural applications through the use of EFVs supporting critical loads during PSPS events and other grid disruptions.
Key Project Members
David Meyers
CEO
Gridtractor, Inc.
Subrecipients
Polaris Energy Services Inc.
Rhombus Energy Solutions, Inc.
Zimeno, Inc.
Current Ways, Inc.
Cal-West Rain, Inc.
Huis Digital, LLC
Match Partners
Polaris Energy Services Inc.
Rhombus Energy Solutions, Inc.
Gridtractor, Inc.
Zimeno, Inc.
Current Ways, Inc.
Huis Digital, LLC
