Electric Power Industries Expect 400% Growth In Annual EV Sales By 2023

The electric power industry expects a 400% growth in annual sales of plug-in electric vehicles by 2023, which may substantially increase electricity usage and peak demand in high adoption areas. Understanding customer charging patterns can help utilities anticipate future infrastructure changes that will be needed to handle large vehicle charging loads. Under OE’s Smart Grid Investment Grant (SGIG) program, six utilities evaluated operations and customer charging behaviors for in-home and public electric vehicle charging stations.

This report provides the results of these SGIG projects to help individual utilities determine how long existing electric distribution infrastructure will remain sufficient to accommodate demand growth from electric vehicles, and when and what type of capacity upgrades or additions may be needed. The report also examines when consumers want to recharge vehicles, and to what extent pricing and incentives can encourage consumers to charge during off-peak periods.