Over 150 participants from 15 APEC economies and several non-APEC economies attended the “APEC Workshop on Energy and Green Transport Benefits of Electric Vehicles”. A portion of the agenda was devoted to EV infrastructure and standardization. This included discussion of connectivity standards for EVs and their potential harmonization. A key aspect of EV infrastructure development is the development of communications prototols between grids and vehicles. Such protocols can allow the vehicle owners or operators to communicate their requirements to the grid operator, in terms of how much charge they will require (how much distance they expect to drive) and when they need the charge delivered (when they will need to start their next trip). They can also allow the grid operator to meet the vehicles’ requirements in the least-cost way from available generation.
An important finding from the workshop discussion is that development of EV markets can enhance power grid operations. Presentations indicated that an eight-hour overnight charging period would provide around two to four times the amount of charge required for typical daily driving distances. It follows that EVs could be employed as a mobile form of energy storage for load shifting on the power grid. They could be charged in residential districts at night time, off-peak, when marginal generating costs are low. They could then be partially discharged in commercial districts where the drivers are working, during the day time, thereby helping to provide power during peak demand hours yet retaining sufficient energy for driving back home.
Several measures were discussed to help bring about the grid-enhancing benefits of EVs. Development of charging infrastructure by power companies, property developers, building management companies and government was seen as important. Standardization of the charging infrastructure, providing a harmonized communications protocol between utilities and EVs, would be helpful, as would a variety of charging modes and locations, ranging from low-voltage plugs in buildings for slow charging to dedicated high-voltage charging units for rapid charging. Improvement of battery technologies for longer life time, higher performance, higher energy density, less charging time and lower cost, as well as improvement of other EV components for higher performance, better cooling and reduced weight, would also play key roles in promoting the market penetration of EVs and obtaining the associated benefits for the power grid.
Related areas for future work in APEC were suggested. Accelerated harmonization of standards for electric vehicle and charging infrastructure, including the charging voltage, current, power, protocol and charging plug, was suggested in order to reduce EV business uncertainty. Region-wide cooperation between automobile manufacturers to standardize the EV charging interface, communications protocols and other technical design features was also proposed as desirable.