ev.energy customers reduce peak demand by 80% as part of Project Shift

ev.energy delighted to share some of the fantastic insights we’ve gained as a strategic partner in the UK’s largest smart charging trial!

Through the Shift project, we’ve been working with UK Power Networks and other partners Octopus Energy and Kaluza to trail market based incentives for domestic smart electric vehicle charging. ev.energy’s customer proposition is a fully automated approach, with customers utilising smart chargers or smart control via a ‘connected car’ with charging schedules optimised by ev.energy. Customers set their ready-by-time in the app and charging sessions are scheduled by an algorithm that delivers the customer need at the lowest cost for their bill, the environment and the electricity grid.

Over 1,000 users of the ev.energy smart charging app have contributed to the trial and been rewarded for every smart charge they complete with points that can be used to claim rewards. The choice of reward included 300 Free Miles of home charging per month with Igloo Energy; free rapid charging with ESB Energy (up to £60) when customers agree to smart charge at home; £5 Amazon or Starbucks vouchers for every 20 smart charges; and one month of carbon removal credits for every 20 smart charges.

So far in the trial, ev.energy have managed over 48,000 charging sessions, delivering 900,000 kWh of smart energy and saving more than 20 tonnes of CO2 emissions*. Results to date have demonstrated an average reduction in charging demand of 80% during the 6-9pm evening peak across all customers in the trial. Using ev.energy’s smart charging technology to shift EV demand to off-peak times can help reduce loading on electricity networks and reduce the cost of operating the grid by deferring expensive and disruptive network upgrades that often requires digging up streets to lay larger cables.

Ian Cameron, head of customer service and innovation at UK Power Networks, said: “Electric vehicles are coming, and we have a responsibility to provide the capacity needed to ensure our customers can charge when and where they wish. Smart charging has an important role to play in making sure we get the most efficient use out of our existing infrastructure, and where we do invest it is in the right place at the right time.”

Nick Woolley, CEO & co-founder of ev.energy said: “Realising the full potential of market-led smart charging requires collaboration across industry to deliver the right market structure and consumer incentives. UK Power Networks’ market led approach is innovative and supports widespread adoption of smart charging, which is a win for customers by reducing energy costs, a win for the network by reducing congestion, and a win for society by supporting a zero-carbon grid. Together through Project Shift, we have shown that smart electric vehicle charging has a role to play in helping utilities like UK Power Networks avoid constraints and support a zero-carbon grid.”

Check out the full report here: Project Shift progress report

ev.energy has also run smart charging pilots for networks including AusNet in Australia and Ameren in the USA. For more information and enquires about pilot opportunities, please contact: William Goldsmith, Head of Commercial & Grid Services: william.goldsmith@ev.energy

*Emissions are calculated based on the national grid data on emissions associated with generation in a given UK GSP Group at a given time. Carbon savings are calculated as the difference between: the grid carbon intensity at the time the car would have charged if there was no smart charging intervention, and when the car did charge as instructed by ev.energy

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