Could Fleet Electrification be the Next Big Grid Disrupter?

Source: Teresa Hansen · T&D WORLD · | February 15, 2022

The transition from combustion engines to electric batteries has begun and will be enormous for not only vehicle owners and manufacturers, but also electric utilities.

Source: T&D World

Since early in the 20th century, it’s been said that Americans have a “love affair with the automobile.” This love affair has changed little in 100 years, but automobiles sure have, and more drastic change is on the way. The transition from combustion engines to electric batteries has begun and will be enormous for not only vehicle owners and manufacturers, but also electric utilities. Electricity generators, which for many years were the largest greenhouse gas (GHG) emitters in the U.S., relinquished their No. 1 position to the transportation sector in 2016. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the transportation sector accounted for about 29% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2019. Although the percentage fell some during 2020 due to lockdowns and restricted travel, it has since climbed and when 2021 data analysis is completed, many experts expect to see emissions levels close to those of 2019.

Passenger cars along with medium and heavy trucks account for about 62% of the transportation sector’s total GHG emissions, globally. Rail, two and three-wheelers, buses and light commercial vehicles along with aviation and shipping make up the remaining 38%, according to Statista. These statistics explain why auto manufacturers are increasing EV offerings for passenger cars, as well as commercial fleet vehicles as residential and commercial & industrial (C&I) customers signal that they no longer want to be part of the climate change problem, but instead part of the solution.  

U.S. utilities have reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 40 percent since 2005, according to the Department of Energy, but they still have a long way to go to meet their net zero carbon goals. This is a challenging and expensive task and becomes even more challenging when coupled with the addition of hundreds of thousands of EVs and the infrastructure needed to charge them. I believe if transportation electrification occurs as quickly as many believe, this transition to EVs could become a major grid disruptor likened to the integration of intermittent renewable energy.