Electric Utility
July 4, 2017
ChargeTO Report: How Utilities could reduce EV peak load by over 50%
A problem has surfaced with electric vehicles (EVs): The average electricity usage of a home in Ontario, Canada is 25 kilowatt hours (kWh) a day, but EVs, like the new Tesla Models S and X, have batteries that can store up to 100 kWh, or about four days’ worth of electricity. How, then, would the electrical grid handle thousands of vehicles charging at once?[…]
May 2, 2017
Why Utility Reward Programs and Electric Car Owners Are a Perfect Match
Rewards programs are by now a part of most Americans’ lives. Whether you have a frequent flyer account, choose a credit card for the cash back offers, or enjoy a free 10th coffee after you buy nine at a café, you know the benefits of consumer loyalty to a brand.
April 26, 2017
8 Things to Know About Owning an EV in New York City
New York City is quickly becoming a hub for electric vehicle (EV) adoption in America. At the close of 2016, New York State had by far the highest number of plug-in EVs on the road of any Northeastern state (16,710), and the Big Apple had the most of any city in the state (2,996). This statistic may seem remarkable for a city with so[…]
April 20, 2017
Utility Customers Set to Save Billions Each Year Thanks to Electric Vehicles
In most scenarios, electric vehicle owners stand to save money over the life of their vehicles compared to gas-powered equivalents. There is another major benefit that doesn’t get as much attention though – savings to electric utilities and their customers thanks to load-balancing. Recently, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) funded a study through M.J. Bradley & Associates LLC (MJB&A) measuring potential outcomes for plug-in vehicle[…]
September 22, 2016
How Electric Vehicles Provide Relief for Japan’s Delicate Grid
Since the Fukushima crisis, Japan has struggled to balance its grid. So how could the addition of more electricity demand in the form of hundreds of thousands of electric vehicles help? As a highly industrialized, densely populated island nation with limited domestic energy production, it should come as little surprise that Japan has faced energy constraints for more than 50 years. What is impressive[…]
July 21, 2016
How Much Can You Save With Off-Peak Charging?
Electric vehicles use a lot of electricity. An all-electric Nissan LEAF requires nearly 3,242 kilowatt-hours of juice to cover the 11,346 miles Americans average in their cars annually. That amounts to a 30 percent increase in an average household’s electricity consumption. Seattle, which benefits from blending cheap, hydroelectric energy into the grid, has a lower cost of electricity than most West Coast cities. Still,[…]
June 1, 2016
How Utilities Play a Major Role in the Future of EV Charging Infrastructure
Plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) offer a wealth of societal benefits that extend far beyond the good feelings many drivers get from skipping the gas pump. In recent years, these benefits have become increasingly quantifiable, as studies and new methods for understanding the impacts of PEVs have accumulated. Consumers, the public, governments and utilities all stand to gain from economic payoffs associated with strong PEV[…]
November 25, 2015
What is Smart Charging? (with infographic)
In our last post, we discussed how many utilities are moving towards time-of-use (TOU) pricing schemes for their residential customers. Under the TOU model, residents are billed for electricity based on the time of day that it is consumed. And while this transformation can help shift demand to off-peak periods in the short-term, utilities will need to adapt to the impact electric vehicles will[…]
September 5, 2014
The role of utilities in supporting EV adoption
What do electric utilities have to gain from electric vehicle adoption within their service area? As customers reduce their electrical demand through methods like conservation and rooftop solar, introducing electric vehicles can provide an additional load that can be used to maintain good utilization of long term assets. This can help electric utilities provide a more reliable, balanced, and cost effective electricity service.[…]
