Good day,
Aggressively moving to a virtual power plant (VPP) that proactively manages electricity would significantly benefit future electric power customer needs, including those adopting electric vehicles (EV), according to a study conducted by Jackson Associations for Southern California Edison (SCE).
While limited in its scope, the author, Jerry Jackson, president of Jackson Associates, concludes that the average EV customer could see at least $560 in annual savings if the utility actively managed its electric generation and storage using VPP.
“Study results show that, at a market share of just 10%, combining EV battery electricity supply to the grid in peak period hours along with managed overnight charging can provide an EV virtual power plant that completely shaves residential peak demands,” Jackson wrote. “Savings are estimated at $560 per EV customer, even after accounting for the cost of recharging the EV battery.”
VPP is a system that incorporates several types of power sources, including wind, solar and available battery capacity, to effectively store unused energy until it is needed. In the study, Jackson said that if SCE used the available capacity in EV batteries after peak usage hours, the energy storage would be enough offset peak energy usage and lower overall costs.
“Shifting one kWh from the 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. on-peak time period to off-peak hours saves $0.25 in the summer and $0.23 in the winter,” he wrote.
“Program parameters assume that utility load management will access reserves remaining in the EV battery after the afternoon commute, reserving at least 20% of the full battery charge (approximately 60 miles of driving distance) for contingent travel,” Jackson said.
The study evaluated 5,000 randomly selected SCE customers’ electricity usage over single weeks in January and August. Demographic data was used to estimate the future EV owner to be part of a household with more than $125,000 in total income and daily commutes of less than 120 miles. The study randomly assigned EV ownership to households in this subset to calculate its future projections.
The study also calculated battery reserve usage in this program to completely offset each EV customer’s hourly electric use. Jackson said that nearly all EV customers had “sufficient battery reserves to pull more power, making EV customers net power producers in peak hours.”
He concludes by noting that each utility will have different results and EV savings will be unique to each customer and the overall concept of VPP requires a more thorough analysis to determine its viability in multiple locations.
Did you know?
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Quotable:
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Final Thoughts
A study conducted for Southern California Edison has found that proactively managing the electric grid through a virtual power plant (VPP) management plan could offset much of the electric demand that will come with the adoption of electric vehicles. The study’s author said more research is needed, but in a limited analysis, he found that EV customers could save at least $560 per year in electric costs if the utility was able to tap excess battery capacity in the vehicles during off-peak times for excess storage capacity. The power would be tapped when needed, lowering overall costs of generating and transmitting energy.
Hammer down everyone!