What a site needs before installing bidirectional chargers

Electrical readiness

• Service capacity: the rated capacity at the transformer and main, and how much of it your existing peak already consumes.
• Panel and feeder headroom on the loops or docks you want to serve, plus conduit paths and trenching distance.
• Load profile: twelve months of interval data if the utility can provide it, otherwise twelve months of bills.
• Whether on-site storage can defer a service upgrade — it usually can, by buffering peaks instead of enlarging the transformer.

Equipment and certification

• Bidirectional charging equipment certified to UL 9741, with grid-interactive inverter behaviour to UL 1741 SB where required.
• Connector strategy: CCS and NACS for vehicles, CHAdeMO where legacy V2G platforms are in scope, plus marine and RV pedestal standards for the site.
• Submetering at each pedestal so charging is billable and exports are settleable.
• Wet, salt-air and seasonal environments: enclosure ratings and corrosion protection matter more at a marina than in a parking structure.

Permitting and interconnection

Exporting power across the meter requires an interconnection agreement with the utility, and the review process is the long pole in most schedules. Local authorities will also want electrical permits, and coastal or floodplain sites may add environmental review.

GridLynQ produces a location-specific permitting and interconnection checklist as part of your tailored plan, so the sequencing is visible before any equipment is ordered.

Operations

• Who sets pricing, and how charging appears on a guest's bill or reservation.
• Which loads island during an outage, and how the transfer is tested.
• Reporting: monthly revenue, demand savings and utilisation, so the association or ownership group can see the asset performing.