According to the latest study conducted by G.T.M. Research, a provider of market analysis, the increasing number of electric vehicles in the road that need charging presents both a challenge and a market opportunity for smart grid hardware, software and communications vendors.
G.T.M. Research’s latest smart grid report, The Networked E.V.: The Convergence of Smart Grids and Electric Vehicles, focuses on the utility-side issues rather than the challenges of charging stations, such as monitoring, control, and protocols between grid infrastructures and E.V.’s.
Through the study, the company suggests that there should be communication standards and protocols between the power grid companies and the E.V. industry. Distribution automation technologies, or intelligent control over power grid functions, are also necessary for a self-aware grid that can monitor E.V. consumption patterns and up-to-date grid conditions.
Currently, E.V. infrastructure investments are centered on charging stations. However, investments in new generation dynamic grid devices will be imperative.
Smart grid technologies such as next generation tap changers, voltage regulators, capacitor banks and reclosers are needed to support the developing E.V. chargers. These smart grid technologies will enable grid optimization and control that will enable the safe transition into the wide use of E.V.’s.
With the fluctuation of oil prices and the advancements made in the auto-industry developing the E.V. market, the research company projects that the global E.V. sales by 2016 will hit 3.8 million.
The company believes that with this projection, there will be acceleration in the rate of adoption of automation technologies, vehicle-to-grid communications and new software applications.
“Over the next decade, ensuring adequate distribution grid reliability appears to be the principal challenge related to the initial rollout of E.V.’s,” said G.T.M. Research’s senior manager of smart grid, David J. Leeds.
“A variety of related grid control and protection issues will necessitate a large investment in smart grid technologies, specifically grid communications and distribution automation,” he added.
