Smart EV

Overview

• Evidence¹ shows that there is a lack of electricity network capacity to support the forecast increase in plug-in electric vehicles (EVs); this would traditionally require expensive, disruptive and timely network reinforcement. This is a potential barrier to EV uptake that could impact the automotive and associated supply chains.
• Managed EV charging could support EV uptake at times where the customer and the electricity network needs protection from multiple EVs charging at the same time on a network; to safeguard the customer against an imminent issue with supply – i.e. it would keep the lights on.
• The Smart EV Consultation on the Interim Solution for Domestic Managed Electric Vehicle Charging is seeking stakeholder views on both the interim solution and a possible longer-term solution.

Electric vehicles (EVs) are set to play an important role in improving our air quality, with both UK Government and Scottish Government stating that by 2040 and 2032 respectively, all new cars and vans must be zero emission. Our local electricity networks will need to evolve and change to cope with the growing trend towards electrification of both transport and heat. These changes will include traditional upgrading of networks, but also a new and increasingly viable range of smart and market-based solutions.

The Smart EV project is funded by Scottish and Southern Energy Networks through its Network Innovation Allowance and delivered by EA Technology. It is a follow-on project to My Electric Avenue. The evidence from My Electric Avenue shows that electric vehicles (EVs) will cause an impact on the local electricity network, requiring significant investment by Distribution Network Operators (DNOs). My Electric Avenue also demonstrated that demand-side response solutions can work, and can work sympathetically with the network, EVs and people.

What will the project do?

The Smart EV project is seeking views on what the managed charging technology options could look like to facilitate EV uptake on our local electricity networks. This sort of ‘demand management’ technology would only come into play if other market-led solutions are unable to deliver or are yet to be established. Managed charging would be deployed only where network monitoring shows that a power outage is deemed imminent or likely due to the number of EVs charging in a local area, or indeed a network has already reached its load capacity limits and a fault has occurred. Reassuringly, studies done through the Smart EV project have shown that managed charging is likely to have little or no impact on an EV driver’s ability to drive to where they need to go the next day – see the Smart EV Use Case and Managed EV Charging Impact Report at the bottom of this page.

Consultation with stakeholders

A key part of this project is to present the engineering options to a set of stakeholders and seek opinions as to the most viable for all concerned. The first stage of this engagement was delivered through the Smart EV Consultation on Managed EV Charging that closed in December 2016. The results of the Consultation are available under ‘Key documents and links’ at the bottom of this page.

The project is now consulting on the interim Managed Electric Vehicle Charging Solution, and at the same time taking the opportunity to seek stakeholder views on a possible longer-term solution. The Consultation document is located at the top of this page. It opens on 23 March 2018 and closes at midnight on 30 April 2018.

We need the input of as many relevant stakeholders as possible – charging point manufacturers, installers, energy suppliers, network operators, EV manufacturers, policymakers, and others involved in the supply chain. If this project is relevant to your work, we would like to engage with you; we’ll make the process as straight forward and efficient as possible. Please send your Consultation response to smartEV@eatechnology.com smartEV@eatechnology.com to have your say.

¹ My Electric Avenue

Key documents and links: