LOS ANGELES: More and more car makers are now offering solar energy production and storage solutions, not only to power car batteries, but also to power homes when needed.
The latest example is Hyundai and its Home solution.
The unstoppable rise in sales of electric vehicles is a major contributor to the increase in demand for electricity.
In order to ensure that their models have a virtually zero carbon footprint, several manufacturers have already decided to offer domestic solutions for the personal production, storage and use of energy.
Already available in the United States, these are based on solar energy. After Tesla, it's now Hyundai's turn to get into the game.
Hyundai Home is a device that generates electricity from solar energy collected on the owner's roof.
The idea is to allow drivers not to be entirely dependent on the local grid and to be self-sufficient in energy, even if only in case of emergency.
In the long term, this solution promises to be cost-effective, allowing users to reduce their energy bills. And while this could, in the long term, represent savings for users, for the South Korean manufacturer, it is a new source of income.
This solution will initially be offered by Hyundai in about 15 American states. Each order will be customisable, with an advisor on hand to help determine the details of the installation according to each individual's energy needs.
The package consists of solar panels and energy storage terminals. Demonstrations will be available in dealerships to better explain how it all works.
Tesla was a pioneer in this field a few years ago, again in the United States, with its Solar Roof solution, a set of tiles that collect solar energy on the roof, which is then stored in a battery installed within the home.
