ESB Networks, the electricity distribution system operator for the Republic of Ireland, launched EV Flex in mid-August 2026: a six-month trial that pays participating home EV drivers up to EUR 78 in total for leaving their car plugged in whenever it is parked, rather than only when it needs charging. Capacity is capped at 2,000 participants. ESB Networks and its technology partner describe it as the country's largest domestic charging flexibility trial to date.
Smart-charging company Ohme supplies the software behind the trial. Once a car is plugged in, the system shifts the actual charging window to whenever the grid has spare capacity, without the driver acting on anything themselves. Participants need an Ohme smart charger; ESB Networks already runs a separate scheme, "Is This a Good Time," that rewards customers for responding to individual grid events, and EV Flex sits alongside it rather than replacing it.
The mechanism is the part worth noting past Ireland: the flexibility lives entirely above the charge point, in whichever software is scheduling the session, not in the hardware itself. Plugchoice smart charging works the same way, over OCPP, so the same kind of shifting runs on any charger already installed rather than needing new hardware.
Sources: electrive.com, "Ireland launches EV Flex smart charging trial", August 14, 2026. The Irish Times, "What would it take for you to change your EV charging habits? The ESB wants to find out", August 15, 2026.