The Need for Charging: Evaluating utility infrastructures for electric vehicles while providing customer support

In 2011, at the beginning of the current electric vehicle (EV) market in the United States, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) published a report [1] detailing certain aspects of the emergence of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs), including the deployment of charging infrastructure, future impacts on the grid, and potential roles for electric utilities in supporting transportation electrification. Characteristics of this early market included a presumed reliance on home recharging and relatively low charging rates for the first two production vehicles (Chevrolet Volt and Nissan LEAF). The automotive industry had standardized around a common connector for charging from ac electricity at power levels up to 19.2 kW. A similar consensus had not been reached for dc fast charging (DCFC), but early deployment of a few 50-kW stations based on the CHAdeMO standard began, enabling a modest level of intercity travel for EVs with a practical range of about 80 mi.