EV Charger Infrastructure Analysis in Georgia

By: Isaac Amponsah, Catherine Grey, Joseph Kern, Yifan Liu, Catriona MacGregor

Outline

• Introduction
• Greenhouse Gas Emissions
• Current Charging Infrastructure
• Potential Grid Impacts
• Economic Potential
• Georgia Policy and Analysis
• Conclusion

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Passenger vehicles made up 13% of total green house gas emissions in the U.S. in 2019.

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Can electric vehicles reduce these emissions?

Can the U.S./Georgia electric grid handle a transition to electric vehicles?

What will the cost be for this transition?

What policies can assist in the transition effectively and equitably?

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Emissions reductions due to electrification of passenger vehicles will depend on the local electric grid.

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Regardless of the electric grid, the batteries make up the largest chunk of emissions for an electric vehicle.

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DC fast chargers also require these batteries due to demand charges, but we estimate the batteries will have a limited increase in emissions [1].

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By electrifying passenger vehicles, the U.S. could see a reduction of 5.3 to 7.8% in the GHG emissions.

Current Charging Infrastructure

• Types of Charging Station in Ga
• Level 1: Charge EV through 120V AC
• Level 2: Uses 240V and 208V AC
• DC Fast Charging: Most advanced

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• Current Limitations
• Cold weather: Charges fast in warm weather vs cold weather
• Cost of installation
• Battery charging inefficiency: not all energy is used up to run the vehicle

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Georgia Electric Vehicle Charging Demand vs. Grid Capacity

• EV demand on power grid highly depends on the percentage of EVs on the road
• If EVs consisted of 80% of the vehicles on the road, they would account for almost 8% of the current grid electricity generation

Future Developments for Georgia’s Power Grid

• Grid Capacity Changes:
• Retiring 3,500 MW coal powered units
• Increasing natural gas power by an additional 2,356 MW
• Doubling renewable generation by adding 6,000 MW by 2035
• Overload mitigation techniques
• Off-peak hours, reduced charging rate
• Grid resiliency efforts
• Increasing current transmission and distribution systems’ resiliency to weather
• Increased research into energy storage capabilities

DCFC installation is most expensive when meeting drive range anxiety but cost effective for meeting energy demand.

• Currently: 27 charging stations per 1,000 square miles
• Needs: 56 charging stations per 1,000 square miles

^{The $0 installation cost is under the assumption that the charging location offers an outlet with a dedicated circuit where PEV users can plug their Level 1 EVSE cord set into.}

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• 2021 Energy Demand: 120,000 MWh
• 2030 Energy Demand: 1,200,000 MWh

Cost conscious vs practical implementation leads to contradicting results.

• Purely Cost Oriented Perspective
• Level 1 chargers used to meet drive range anxiety and DCFC used in energy dense locations.
• Practical Perspective
• DCFC stations used to meet drive range anxiety and Level 2 stations used in cities.

Factors that affect Cost

Cost of Labor

Location of Unit

Charging Capacity

There is high potential for charger installation to be cheaper throughout Georgia.

• Atlanta: installed in places that require long electrical runs increasing costs

0.85%

-7.71%

Hourly Labor Costs Compared to National Average

Atlanta

Georgia

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Policy in Georgia

Incentives for Promoting Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure in Georgia

Source: https://afdc.energy.gov/data_download/

EVSE tax credits have three main concerns

• Benefits: encourage the engagement of both direct enterprises and indirect enterprises

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• Concerns: 
• Successful installation of EV chargers versus great delivery of charging services
• Rational profit-maximizing enterprises: urban and developed areas versus rural or historically underrepresented regions. 
• Purchase and installation of chargers versus the production and technology innovation.

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PEV dynamic charging rate can save the bills 

Source:  https://www.georgiapower.com/residential/billing-and-rate-plans/pricing-and-rate-plans/plug-in-ev.html

$ 107 per month to fill the tank  versus $ 19 per month to charge on PEV

* EV estimate based on driver charging 4,400 kWh per year, all at super off-peak prices, with 8% sales tax.

* Gasoline estimate based on a ratio of 1 kWh = 3.4 miles, 24.7 MPG, and a cost of $2.50 per gallon.

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EVSE rebate provided to residents

Source: https://blog.carvana.com/2021/07/how-much-does-it-cost-to-install-an-ev-charger/

• The costs of installation for these levels of charging equipment vary significantly. 
• The rebate valuing at $250 can make a difference when the total costs of installation are similar for Level 1 and Level 2. 
• However, $250 is not enough to change some low-income people’s behaviors

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Conclusion

• Vehicle electrification will reduce emissions, but the number of net emissions will depend on the local electric grid and the battery.
• Future developments in the grid systems are needed for U.S./Goergia to handle a transition to electric vehicles
• The costs for this transition in Georgia can be lower than national level given the charging capacity, location of unit, and cost of labor
• The current policies in Georgia have the space for improvement to become more effectively and equitably

Questions?