Utilities Prepare to Power Up as Electric Vehicles Gain Speed
Exploring the utility opportunity
Manufacturers have invested billions of dollars in developing electric vehicles (EVs) for both personal and commercial use. Fleet and sustainability managers are increasingly embracing the benefits and EVs are hitting the roads. But with more and more medium and heavy-duty EVs on the market, utilities must invest in the high-powered infrastructure necessary to support these vehicles’ needs.
To address this, utilities and other charging stakeholders – automakers, service providers, infrastructure builders and policymakers – must take this opportunity to step up to lead and enable this new energy ecosystem, writes Maryline Daviaud Lewett in Utility Dive.
In the article, Daviaud Lewett, Director of Business Development for Transformative Technologies at Black & Veatch, explores the new energy landscape of the EV. She notes that in a recent survey, Black & Veatch found that 85 percent of respondents expect multiple charging sites greater than 5 MW in their territory by 2023 – but 25 percent are not taking steps to prepare. And the Edison Electric Institute Electric Vehicle Sales Forecast estimates that the U.S. needs to construct 9.6 million charge ports by 2030 to support large-scale electrification.
“Although efforts will be far-ranging, it will be up to utilities to drive the infrastructure upgrades and managed approaches necessary to make widespread electrification a reality,” Daviaud Lewett states. “The timing is critical as electric vehicle adoption rates continue to grow, necessitating high-power capacity.”
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