Electric Vehicles: The Big Mo?

Phil Carson | Jun 10, 2010

 

The promise of electric vehicles (EVs) is multi-faceted and news concerning them is relentless. Whether those far-reaching promises and all the commotion really translate into momentum for adoption remains to be seen.

EVs' great promise is to, among other things, deliver improved national security via energy independence, potentially lower transportation costs for businesses and individuals and release less-harmful levels of emissions.

Recently, one analyst stated that society would one day look back on 2010 as a historical landmark, when EVs became commercially available in numbers. But will the adoption curve look like a hockey stick or a cross-cut saw blade?

EVs also provide a platform both for clean technology advocates and naysayers to make points in larger debates, often involving the economy, the environment and public policy. Little surprise, then, that we've covered a number of EV angles in past months, from recent legislative efforts to smart charging innovations, from vehicle-to-grid (V2G) applications to EVs' impacts on the grid.

Today I have no great thesis to foist upon you, but I'd like to pass along the latest insights from an EV-centric webcast yesterday.

What are utility concerns about the advent of EV adoption, in whatever numbers?

In an Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA) webcast yesterday, Doug Kim, director of plug-in-electric-vehicle programs at Southern California Edison (SCE), named several concerns.

Kim said that internally, his utility is reviewing the robustness of local distribution system elements for the expected draw by EVs. EV loads can be multiples of typical household loads and the density of EV adoption within a distribution network could overwhelm the "last mile."

"A simple, efficient charging process for consumers is important," Kim said. "And customer education is critical."

Kim availed himself of the opportunity to repeat SCE's mantras to EV buyers: contact SCE before you bring home your newly purchased EV and please charge it during off-peak hours. The utility hopes to match EV loads with renewable supplies, such as wind, which tend to be strongest at night.

To reach those who need to hear these messages, Kim said SCE will use mailings, a phone center and social media to drive traffic to its website, where a quantity and breadth of information will be available, including dynamic pricing rates. That's here.

The utility has posted information on its "standard residential rate," "whole house time-of-use rate" and "EV-only time-of-use rate," with explanations on implications. For instance, the "EV-only" rate requires a separate meter and up-front costs, but the electricity may cost only one-third of peak rates. The site makes for good reading if you want to get your arms around early adoption scenarios on the utility side.

"We want to be sure we do our part to support this market," Kim said, noting that as much as 25 percent of all EVs are purchased in California, SCE's home turf.

Mark Duvall, director of electric transportation at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), shed further light on the challenges utilities face and on expected patterns of use, as revealed by EPRI research.

First, Duvall noted that EPRI has worked on electric transportation in various forms for decades. One thing that's clear, he said, is that 3,000 utilities in the United States and a handful of vehicle manufacturers "speak different languages." Duvall sees EPRI as fostering collaboration between the EV industry and utilities.

Readiness for EV adoption probably will require placing a priority on residential charging stations, Duvall said, because research reveals that individual vehicles spend two-thirds their time parked at home. This should be simple for single-family dwellings but far less simple for multi-family dwellings and apartments. (Duvall added that cars spend 80 percent of their time parked at home or work, 15 percent in public parking and 5 percent on the road.)

Employers may play a role in workplace charging, he said, where morning til noon charging could avoid peak rates. Private sector investment in public charging stations may be the most difficult challenge, as the infrastructure is expensive and the business case uncertain. One possibility: dedicated parking for a business might provide free charging for bona fide shoppers.

"There's controversy over how much [public infrastructure] is enough," Duvall said.

As for the environmental benefits, Duvall noted that although half the nation's electricity is generated by burning coal, power sources are quite diverse and that, in any case, EVs provide "significant carbon savings" and make "significant but modest" contributions to air quality.

Asked about the pros and cons of legislation introduced last week for consideration by both Senate and House, webcast panelists - including Brian Wynne, president of EDTA, and Mike Rowand, director of advanced customer technology at Duke Power - all concurred that policies ought to encourage widespread adoption of EVs. The bills introduced last week continue an earlier policy of focusing efforts on targeted communities to achieve a critical mass of adoption.

One question not asked, which has provided fodder for proponents and naysayers alike: should the federal government, or local governments for that matter, play a role in encouraging adoption?

I'll have more to say on that point as well as bringing readers' comments to the fore on these issues.

Phil Carson
Editor-in-chief
Intelligent Utility Daily
pcarson@energycentral.com
303-228-4757