Out of the 1.2 million vehicles traveling roadways in the Sacramento region of California, about 30,000 of these are EVs. So not much — yet.
When the number of EVs in Sacramento creeps closer to 1.2 million, their energy needs will make up 30 percent of the electric output of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD).
“That means one-third of our business will no longer be just powering homes and businesses. It will be powering the mobility sector,” said James Frasher, manager of new business development at SMUD.
“And so it has become a major planning component for us,” he added, speaking on a July 20 panel hosted by Veloz, a Sacramento-based EV policy and advocacy group.
These are the kinds of planning exercises unfolding at other utilities and state agencies like the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC).
“We’ve had the success of amazing deployment — especially in the light-duty side — of electric vehicles,” said Alice Reynolds, president of the California PUC, "but also our medium- and heavy-duty fleets." Today, there are more than 1.5 million EVs in California, expected to grow to 8 million by 2030.
To prepare for the future, the PUC is re-examining rate design to advance the idea of using electric rates to guide recharging times. Also, the agency is taking a closer look at concepts like vehicle-to-grid transfer for innovations around grid management.
“When you think about the batteries in those vehicles, and how they can provide a source of power to the grid, as well as a giant flexible load, which is really what we’re going to need, more and more, as we bring on more intermittent resources,” said Reynolds, calling to mind solar and wind power, which are not always consistent.
Charging companies are moving forward with their own plans for ensuring they have adequate power to recharge vehicles. Electrify America, the largest DC fast-charging network in the country, is developing solar generation and battery storage facilities.
In February, the company broke ground on its Electrify America Solar Glow project in San Bernardino County, Calif., a solar field capable of producing 75 megawatts of power, with an annual production of 225,000 megawatt hours, enough electricity to power 20,000 homes.
Electrify America already has 35 megawatts of battery storage at some of its recharging facilities. Battery storage can be used when time-of-use pricing raises the cost of electricity.
“Energy storage allows us to charge our batteries at the times that the power is available. So over a 24-hour period we can charge at times where maybe the rates are lower,” explained Jigar Shah, head of energy services at Electrify America.
Electrify America has more than 150 energy storage systems to store energy to be used during periods when demand charges get applied.
“So that EV drivers on our network can still charge during on-peak hours without being inconvenienced,” said Shah. “And then also, to help with infrastructure constraints, where there may not be enough utility capacity, but still providing those fast-charging services.”
In 2022 Electrify America supported 5.2 million charging sessions, delivering 173 gigawatts of power, enabling more than 493 million miles of electric driving.
“When you’re thinking about that quantity of electricity, it’s hard to have enough local solar and other renewable sources right there to power that,” said Shah. “And so that’s why we’re looking at alternative solutions to make sure that our network continues to be backed by 100 percent renewable energy.”
