The Blackout was a warning

On April 28, 2025, much of Spain and Portugal lost power. The blackout paralyzed transport, communications, and critical infrastructure - exposing how unprepared even advanced nations remain when the grid fails.

It wasn’t just a disruption. It was a warning.

Our systems are fragile. Our resilience strategies are outdated. And our energy transition remains overly centralized in a world that demands flexibility.

At SurplusMap, we’ve spent years preparing for this future - by helping cities, grid operators, and energy companies understand how electric vehicles can do more than just move people. They can move energy.

The hidden network beneath our streets

In Oslo - arguably Europe’s most mature EV ecosystem - progress reveals itself not in grand gestures, but in quiet details.

It’s not just the chargers you see on sidewalks. It’s the hidden ones: in basements, behind depot gates, silently powering buses, waste trucks, and municipal fleets.

These invisible chargers form a secondary grid. A latent energy layer. One that, if activated strategically, could support the main grid in times of crisis.

This is the promise of Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) and Vehicle-to-Home (V2H) technology. Not just consumption, but contribution. Not just charging, but resilience.

More about our V2X work

Seeing the full picture

Most cities and companies only see fragments of their infrastructure. Each CPO, utility, and public agency sees their own chargers, but not the full ecosystem.

That’s the gap SurplusMap addresses.

Through AI-powered geospatial insights, we help infrastructure operators see patterns across entire cities and markets. In Oslo, for instance, our collaboration with the city made it possible to spot peak usage trends, grid stress points, and opportunities to shift loads or coordinate investments.

The takeaway? When charging behavior is understood holistically, EV infrastructure transforms from a cost center into a resilience asset.

From disruption to design

The blackout in Southern Europe underscores a basic truth: resilience can’t be reactive. It must be designed.

Distributed energy assets - like EVs and their charging infrastructure - must be woven into urban energy systems with intent. That means planning, visibility, and data.

SurplusMap exists to support this shift. Not just through technology, but through insight. We believe resilience starts with understanding. And understanding starts with seeing what others don’t.

Let’s build smarter cities

If you’re an energy provider, policymaker, or city leader working toward a more resilient energy future, we’d love to connect.

Because in the end, the future of EVs isn’t just about clean transport - it’s about powering cities that can weather any storm. Do you want to get it right? Let's have a chat about how SurplusMap can help you!

Get in touch!