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Potential Impacts of Transportation and Building Electrification on the Grid: A Review of Electrification Projections and Their Effects on Grid Infrastructure, Operation, and Planning

  • Electrification (J Logan, Section Editor)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Purpose of Review

This paper highlights the main impacts of transportation and building electrification on electricity grid infrastructure, operations, and planning. We focus on which electric technologies are expected to grow, how electrification will impact electricity demand and grid activities, and which solutions might improve the integration of these technologies.

Recent Findings

Recent industry reports show increasing projections of electrification technologies in the coming decades. Studies show that increased demand from electrification will likely require grid capacity expansion and make grid operations and planning more challenging; however, multiple non-wires solutions exist to ensure integration is efficient and cost-effective.

Summary

Electrification of space heating and especially transportation is expected to have the largest impact on electricity demand in the near future. Uncontrolled electric vehicle charging poses a significant challenge to grid operations, but control strategies create an opportunity for improved efficiency. Other insights include a high level of uncertainty in electrification adoption and potential benefits of combining electrification technologies with renewable generation and energy storage.

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Acknowledgements

This work was authored by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, operated by Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC, for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) under Contract No. DE-AC36-08GO28308. The views expressed in the article do not necessarily represent the views of the DOE or the US Government. The US Government retains and the publisher, by accepting the article for publication, acknowledges that the US Government retains a nonexclusive, paid-up, irrevocable, worldwide license to publish or reproduce the published form of this work, or allow others to do so, for US Government purposes.

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  1. National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 15013 Denver West Pkwy, Golden, CO, 80401, USA

    Michael Blonsky, Adarsh Nagarajan, Shibani Ghosh, Killian McKenna, Santosh Veda & Benjamin Kroposki

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Blonsky, M., Nagarajan, A., Ghosh, S. et al. Potential Impacts of Transportation and Building Electrification on the Grid: A Review of Electrification Projections and Their Effects on Grid Infrastructure, Operation, and Planning. Curr Sustainable Renewable Energy Rep 6, 169–176 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40518-019-00140-5

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