Using electric vehicles for energy services: Industry perspectives

Recent research on the integration of EV (electric vehicles) in electric power systems has focused on opportunities for new business models with ”smart” charging networks, V2G (vehicle-to-grid) technology, home energy demand management systems, and renewable energy storage [1–6]. However, the realisation of these business models depends on a multitude of factors including technology maturity, corporate strategies and social barriers to adoption which are not captured by existing studies. Based on data from interviews with experts and senior practitioners in four emerging EV markets: the United States, Japan, France, and Norway, this paper contributes a conceptual framework of the various services EVs can provide. We find that while residential applications such as vehicle-to-home and smart home systems are realisable in the near future, grid-scale uses of EV batteries for generation, storage or for V2G will only be deployed in the long term when sufficient vehicle adoption rates justify the implementation of new control architectures. A second important bottleneck identified in this research is the lack of joint investment and revenue models between EV industry players. The framework enables to comprehensively analyse the merits, challenges and opportunities for applications using EV in the electricity sector.