Quote:
Originally Posted by PAR
If the shift to EV is going to happen it will need a greatly upgraded electric grid.
In the summer on hot days you can see in major cities warnings about brownouts and high use/demand just simply based on people turning on the AC.
If the infrastructure is not able to properly deal with the demand then there will be a point that buying and EV comes with the risk of it not being able to be charged or fully charged. As oil dependency shift to electrical dependency.
Add to that a shift will also be needed in how the electricity is generated..
[figures based on the USA]
Power Source % of annual production
Coal 36.97
Nat Gas 30.23
Nuclear 18.79
Hydro 6.75
Renewables 5.33
Petroleum 0.57
Misc 0.34
Storage -0.12
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True, but its already being addressed, at least here. Also, Smartmeters that communicate with car chargers will adjust charging to reduce load and or to reduce the cost to the consumer. Until then most EV cars have apps for your iPhone that let you set the time to charge based on utility rates.
That being said, it's kind of a good problem for electric utility companies to have. More demand means more customers means more revenue for them.