CHARGING AHEAD FOR THE BIG SHIFT
COMMUNITIES, ELECTRICAL GRID OPERATORS TRY TO PREPARE FOR EVENTUAL INFLUX OF EVS
The Kootenay area in British Columbia, home to more than 150,000 people over a sprawling area stretching 57,000 square kilometres, has a mere dozen or so people driving electric vehicles.
But despite the slow adoption of battery- powered automobiles, Kootenay’s three regional districts have partnered with various organizations and are spending $ 1.5 million to install a comprehensive electric vehicle charging network in the hopes of both sparking adoption of such vehicles and boosting tourism.
“It’s not local demand that’s driving this initial strategy, it’s the desire to be prepared and ahead of the game to facilitate the transition to electric vehicles,” said Megan Lohmann, head of community energy management at Community Energy BC, a partner in the Accelerate Kootenay project that will install 53 chargers in the area.
The project is a small step forward and it doesn’t change the fact that charging infrastructure remains one of the most significant obstacles when it comes to adopting electric vehicles, say government officials and auto industry experts, but it also shows how communities and electrical grid operators are trying to prepare for the eventual influx of EVs that the federal government is pushing for.
“Having charging stations is a key part to providing some comfort for local residents that are considering transitioning to a clean energy vehicle,” Lohmann said.
There are two common levels of public chargers: Level 2 chargers, faster than a basic Level 1, can recharge vehicles from zero in about four to six hours; and Level 3 chargers can recharge cars to 80 per cent capacity in about 30 minutes. Canada doesn’t appear to have enough of either.
There were 3,900 publicly accessible Level 1 and Level 2 chargers and 315 Level 3 chargers in Canada in 2016, according to the International Energy Agency. That pales in comparison to other countries such as China (52,778 Level 1 and 2 chargers; and 88,476 Level 3), the United States ( 35,089 Level 1 and 2; and 5,384 Level 3) and Japan ( 17,260 Level 1 and 2; and 5,990 Level 3).
The Accelerate Kootenay project will install 13 fast chargers and 40 level 2 chargers throughout 40 communities.
“We really see connectivity and range anxiety as the biggest barrier for local residents who are very reliant on their personal vehicles and can’t be stuck between two communities, especially at -30C,” she said. “In order to get that broader take of EVs in our region, we really need to demonstrate that there’s a network that’s safe and reliable.”
The number of charging stations required for an area largely depends on how many EVs are expected to be on local roads, but the IEA estimates four to 14 million publicly available outlets will be needed worldwide by 2030.
But any additional infrastructure — particularly powerful fast- charging stations — could potentially impact the electricity grid.
If every Canadian car owner switched to an electric vehicle tomorrow, the amount of electricity annually used would increase by 13-16 per cent, according to a study conducted by Natural Resources Canada research engineer Hajo Ribberink.
Given that the deployment of electric vehicles is not expected to happen overnight, Ribberink said there is time for electricity producers to prepare for the shift.
It may be necessary for some local electricity distribution provid- ers to upgrade transformers in areas that may see a higher early adoption rate of electric vehicles, but Ribberink said charging at night — when there is an excess of unused energy — would help alleviate that potential challenge.
He also points out utility providers can monitor electricity capacity as EVs hit the streets.
For example, Burlington Hydro in Ontario launched a pilot study called EVFutureGrid where electric vehicle owners volunteer to allow the utility to automate charging at optimal times of day, based on usage, demand and prices.
However, Brad Yauch, an economist at the Consumer Policy Institute, is critical of the idea that charging vehicles at night will be the win- win situation for consumers and electricity producers that some experts are hoping for. He said the situation would only work in a perfect world.
“If the forecast that everyone charges their vehicles at night doesn’t actually materialize, then you’ll start running into situations where certain parts of the transition, distribution or generation system might not be able to handle short periods of high demand if there is large- scale adoption of electric vehicles,” he said.
“Slight changes in consumption of power can potentially become a very expensive proposition for consumers.”
Chuck Farmer, director of public affairs at the Independent Electricity System Operator, which oversees Ontario’s electricity grid, said the system is in good shape to manage a gradual increase in EVs, but there may be challenges, particularly if there is rapid adoption in specific areas.
“Where you may see an impact is at the local level, if you have a cluster of them, you may have to upgrade because there is a limit to how much capacity you can use,” he said. “That is the question local distribution companies are asking themselves: How do we prepare if a subdivision has many EVs arrive on the same transformer?”
Devin McCarthy, vice-president of public affairs at the Canadian Electricity Association, said electricity companies are actively looking for the best ways to integrate EVs into the utility grid.
“We’re focused on figuring out the right engineering to accommodate EVs and what we can do to manage load activity throughout the day,” he said. “Part of that is ensuring electricity companies have full information with where charging stations are going to be installed and ... to the extent possible, which customers will own them and what driveways they’ll be sitting in.”
Another consumer concern is being able to replenish electric vehicles at close to the same pace that you can gas up an internal combustion engine vehicle.
To that end, Toronto-based energy storage company eCamion has partnered with Leclanché, an energy storage provider, Geneva- based power producer SGEM and the federal government to install fast- charging stations on the Trans- Canada Highway between Sudbury, Ont., and Manitoba.
The stations will allow up to three drivers to simultaneously charge their electric cars from zero to full in about 30 minutes.
But what happens when more than three people show up at one charging station? Until charging technology improves, you better not be in a hurry.
Elad Barak, vice-president of business development at eCamion, said charging technology still has a long way to go in terms of meeting the expected future demand.
For example, Chargepoint, a California- based company that operates the world’s largest EV charging network, has announced an ultra- fast charging product with a maximum charging output between 200 and 1,000 volts, substantially faster than the Level 3 chargers, that can recharge vehicles in about 30 minutes. But it only takes five minutes to fill a gas tank.
“The technology we have now is what we need for the next 20 years during this transition to electric vehicles, when we don’t have enough capacity to justify upgrades to the grid,” Barak said. “But in order to allow this to happen, we want to make sure people with electric vehicles can use it to travel further. Twenty, 30 years from now, technology will help the industry as a whole transition to electric vehicles.”
In the Kootenays, EV chargers will be dispersed about 80 kilometres apart on average throughout the mountainous region. Several Level 2 and 3 chargers will be installed throughout the region in August.
“We’re on the forefront, in terms of broader collaboration and the regional scope of the design of the network,” Lohmann said.
“Putting one charging station in the middle of the region may be great for that one community and those that can make it there, but it’s not going to provide that opportunity for a bigger shift to electric vehicles. You need to be ahead of the game.”
CONNECTIVITY AND RANGE ANXIETY (ARE) THE BIGGEST BARRIER FOR RESIDENTS.