Battery standardization by the electricity authority will increase EV-to-grid charging

 Battery standardization by the electricity authority will increase EV-to-grid charging

New Delhi: To encourage the integration of electric cars with the grid via reverse charging, the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) has published proposals for battery standardization and interoperability procedures.

According to the vehicle-to-grid (V2G) idea, EVs may satisfy energy demand by feeding electricity back into the public power system.

The CEA has advocated for the CEA (Technical Standards for Connectivity to the Grid) Regulations to include measures for reactive power compensation in its study on V2G reverse charging.

In response to the ministry of power's request in March of this year for CEA to develop rules for reverse charging grid batteries from electric vehicle batteries, a committee headed by the authority's chairman was established on April 11. The study examines the benefits that electric vehicles (EVs) may provide the power system via smart charging, as well as the obstacles, prerequisites for implementation, and future directions for the seamless integration of EVs into the grid.

The industry has expressed worries over battery standards, arguing that they might impede the expansion of battery use, which is why standardization is being called for. The industry has been resisting the finalization of the standards that the center has been working on for the EV battery swapping and replacement.

According to the paper, the electricity industry has an opportunity if electric vehicle (EV) adoption increases significantly. “Since, cars including EVs, typically spend about 80-90% of their lifetime parked. Considering their battery storage capacity and idle times, EVs may prove to be a desirable flexible option for the power grid. As a result, EV fleets may produce enormous amounts of electrical storage capacity ".

According to the CEA analysis, these cars function as dispersed storage resources and variable loads, offering more flexibility to assist power system operations.

It was said that the legislative and regulatory framework, which must also take into account the effects of the additional EV load in the network, such as higher peak demand and grid congestion, will determine how EV charging infrastructure is developed and integrated going forward. It added that installing the high-power chargers might necessitate updating the distribution the built environment. A few of the many challenges that distribution appliances with high EV loads may face include network congestion, overvoltage and undervoltage problems, the need for reactive power compensation, an increase in peak load, and phase imbalance issues.

The use of EVs for V2G services is anticipated to be significantly impacted by standardization, interoperability, bidirectional charging systems, synergies between mobility while the grid, robust bidirectional systems for communication, customer incentives, tariff design, optimization of grid infrastructure requirements, integrated planning of the power and transport sectors, enable revenue stacking for EVs in different markets, and EV load management.

The CEA has also recommended that aggregators be permitted to engage in the energy market by arranging and optimizing EV charging and load profile management, among other ancillary services for the grid.

"The aggregator will connect to every EV fleet car in the initial phase of the process. Each vehicle has a service contract with the aggregator that allows it to use its battery, depending on its current level of charge, to engage in ancillary services to the grid. The study said that in order to be eligible to participate in the V2G system, the EV must be fully charged prior to the plug-out time. The data from the EV will transmit the parameters that the aggregator requires.

According to the CEA, distribution companies (discom) are in charge of setting up the EV tariff structure, supplying electricity connections for the EV charging infrastructure, and making sure that the infrastructure is connected, maintained, and operated correctly. They should also create EV readiness plans based on the effects of charging loads on the grid infrastructure.

EV preparation plans would assist discoms in creating plans for grid upgrades, load management techniques, and increased power purchase, if necessary.

"The DISCOMs should evaluate the needs for EV charging at the grid and feeder levels for various EV penetration scenarios, taking into account other relevant factors like the spatial concentration of EVs, varying EV charging patterns, and the expected effects of Time-of-Use/Time-of-Day (ToD) measures."

The focus on V2G coincides with the nation's growing EV adoption, which has been bolstered by a number of policy initiatives such as PM-eBus Sewa, the National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Storage, alongside the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid and) Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme.