Applications to join the Electric Nation Vehicle to Grid trial including South Wales suggest that clustering of electric vehicles may already be more common than many people expect.
The project aims to demonstrate how V2G technology can provide a solution to potential electricity grid capacity issues as the numbers of EVs increase.
Electric Nation – a project of Western Power Distribution (WPD), in partnership with CrowdCharge – is recruiting 100 Nissan EV owners in the WPD licence areas of the Midlands, South West and South Wales to take part in the trial of Vehicle to Grid smart charging technology. Currently, only Nissan EVs are able to be used for V2G charging due to their CHAdeMO technology.
Charging an electric vehicle at home is equivalent to an extra house in terms of electricity demand. With many households liking their electric car so much that they either already have a second EV or are considering getting one in the near future, this ‘clustering’ will place further load on the local electricity network.
However by using V2G technology, EVs can put energy back into the grid at peak times, so reducing the need for extra electricity generation or network reinforcement.
A number of surveys have suggested that people are giving more consideration to EVs as we come out of lockdown1, and green number plates are set to be rolled out from autumn to help encourage drivers to make the switch to electric vehicles, under plans to drive a green economic recovery. This is all good news for local air quality, but the extra demand on local electricity networks needs to be managed.
Details about the first of a new series of “industry leading” committees have been announced by the Association of Fleet Professionals.
The Electric Vehicle, Low Carbon and Alternative Fuels Committee will be led by AFP deputy chair Stewart Lightbody and vice-chaired by Paul Hollick, AFP co-chair. It includes Denise Lane of Capita, Chris Joyce of the AFP, Steve Cuddy of Close Brothers, Eric Bristow of Schindler, Ken Needham of Foxtons, Simon King of Mitie, Dale Eynon of DEFRA and Lorna McAtear of National Grid.
Its adopted mission statement is to “advise fleet operators how best they can make the transition from standard fuel types to electrification and other alternative fuels” with topics under consideration including: support from central and local government, and the treasury; home charging policies, employee reimbursement and usage; electric highway charging; best practice for EVs and PHEVs, and alternative fuel vehicles beyond EVs.
Stewart said, “Clearly, EVs, low carbon and alternative fuels are very much front-of-mind for fleets at the moment and we’re looking to generate industry-leading thought and discussion across a wide range of relevant areas where fleet managers are looking for guidance and information.”
