Unlocking System Savings With Flexible EV Charging: Lessons From Colorado
Report
Savings from smart charging electric cars and trucks in Europe: A case study for France in 2040
This paper was published in partnership with the Regulatory Assistance Project.
Smart charging optimizes electrical vehicle (EV) charging by adjusting timing and power based on price signals that reflect, for example, when grid capacity can be used or when renewable energy is available. With optimized charging of EVs, power grids can be used in a more cost-efficient way and that saves grid investment costs and can accelerate the electrification of transportation.
This report is part of a global project by the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP) and the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) that analyzes the economic and environmental benefits of deploying smart EV charging in specific geographies. For this study, RAP and the ICCT consulted with Artelys to analyze an EV fleet composed of electric passenger cars and trucks in the French region of Essonne, south of Paris. With its mix of urban and rural infrastructure, Essonne serves as a model for many European grids. Though the results are primarily reflective of the French case, the recommendations can be applied more broadly to enhancing smart EV charging in the European policy context.
Key findings:
- Smart charging can reduce peak load on electricity grids and related system costs. In our case study, smart charging can reduce peak load on the grid by 6% in 2040 compared with unmanaged charging.
- Bidirectional charging can add an even greater reduction of 9% compared with unmanaged charging in 2040.
- Smart charging is a collective task across all EV fleets: It covers not only smart residential overnight charging but also optimized daytime charging of EV fleets at workplaces and fully using electric trucks’ flexibility windows while parked at the depot. Even high-capacity truck charging at highways does not necessarily contribute to peak load if other fleets present in the grid are charging smartly in parallel and thus free up grid capacity.
- Smart charging avoids distribution system costs by flattening system peaks. In our analysis, smart charging could reduce the need for power line reinforcements by 23% in 2040 and allow for 37% less transformer reinforcements in Essonne than unmanaged charging. Overall, a broad estimate suggests that smart EV charging avoids about one-quarter of yearly network reinforcement costs in the area studied.
Key recommendations:
To make EV grid integration cost-efficient and prepare for rapid transport electrification, policymakers and energy regulators at the EU and national levels can consider the following:
- Ensure that smart residential and workplace charging for EVs and smart depot charging for electric trucks are the default mode of charging and create maximum system benefits.
- Introduce cost-reflective pricing of power networks broadly, including through time-varying network pricing, to incentivize smart EV charging.
- Require transparency on network use from distribution grid operators (DSOs) so that more cost-reflective tariffs can be designed and implemented.
- Allow EVs to participate as flexibility resources in energy markets to generate value for customers through demand-response programmes, for example via smart tariffs and services.
- Facilitate joint planning by transport and energy stakeholders to ensure balanced build-out of charging infrastructure; scale distribution system upgrades to the appropriate levels, locally and timewise, to avoid over investment.
