Electric Vehicles are improvising, but different regions demand distinct changes and updates. Once such study based on real-world data reveals that California needs upgrades to meet the future EV loads.
A pair of environmental engineers from the University of California, Davis, discovered that California’s power infrastructure requires significant expansion to fulfil the anticipated rise in electric vehicle (EV) adoption. This requires increasing electricity production and installing more power cables to disperse the load to consumers.
Yanning Li and Alan Jenn, the pair conducted a study that examined California’s electrical infrastructure. They projected the upgrades required to handle the increasing number of EVs on the state’s roads.
Highlights
- Their study evaluates present grid capacity and projects future expenses to meet increasing EV demand.
- A 25% increase in capacity is expected to meet the increased demand which might cost up to $20 billion.
- Around 67% of distribution circuits in densely populated areas will require immediate upgrades by 2045.
- Electricity tariffs are expected to decrease between $0.01 and $0.06 per kWh by 2045 due to rising demand.
- Residential regions will require twice the amount of additional electricity as commercial areas to meet EV charging requirements.
- Power companies might save money by prioritizing production development in business zones assuming that employees prefer to charge their automobiles at work rather than at home.
California has an ongoing ban on gasoline-powered vehicle sales in 2022 with a final ban scheduled for 2035. Although the current vehicles will be able to use gasoline without any limitations.
Li and Jenn asserted that their research based on real-world data highlighting California’s need to upgrade to meet EV loads is helpful worldwide. It predicts global trends when policymakers around the world convert from gasoline-powered vehicles to EVs.
Source: Impact of electric vehicle charging demand on power distribution grid congestion
