Skip to main content

CarConnect to harmonise home plug-in-vehicle charging

The CarConnect project, which aims to help the electricity industry better understand how plug-in electric vehicles (PIVs) charge at home in harmony with the electricity grid, is now under way in the UK. It is known from other projects that clusters of PIVs will have an impact on local electricity networks; analysis from the recently completed My Electric Avenue project indicates that by 2050 the electricity industry in Great Britain may have to invest an additional US$3.6 billion (£2.2 billion) to upgra
May 17, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
The CarConnect project, which aims to help the electricity industry better understand how plug-in electric vehicles (PIVs) charge at home in harmony with the electricity grid, is now under way in the UK.

It is known from other projects that clusters of PIVs will have an impact on local electricity networks; analysis from the recently completed My Electric Avenue project indicates that by 2050 the electricity industry in Great Britain may have to invest an additional US$3.6 billion (£2.2 billion) to upgrade electricity supply infrastructure to customer premises owing to the additional demand from plug-in-vehicles.  

The project will run for three and a half years and will: Develop and deliver an electricity network modelling tool that will enable 6618 Western Power Distribution to identify which parts of their network are susceptible to plug-in-vehicle loads and to assess solutions to avoid network reinforcement works; Develop a method for monitoring the effect of plug-in-vehicles on low voltage networks that will inform the network modelling tool development; Recruit and manage a mass-market customer trial to prove the technical/economic viability of plug-in-vehicle/V2G demand control to avoid or defer network reinforcement.

Set to be the largest PIV project in the world, CarConnect will be working with up to 700 EV drivers in its trials to ensure that such systems are acceptable.

CarConnect is hosted by Western Power Distribution (WPD), the distribution network operator (DNO), and delivered by EA Technology, Drive Electric and Lucy Electric Gridkey. TRL will take on a project oversight role, on behalf of WPD. Funded through the Network Innovation Allowance, CarConnect will find solutions that could avoid the need to replace electricity substations and cables to customers’ homes and workplaces, saving significant cost and disruption to customers.

CarConnect will develop and investigate whether PIV demand control services, that can reduce stop or even reverse charging at certain times of day, can be delivered in a way that meets drivers’ needs for charge for journeys, sharing charge constraints out amongst a wide group of customers and using vehicle-to-grid systems to help in balancing supply and demand.

Related Content

  • March 30, 2017
    OLEV approval for Chago smart EV chargepoints
    A range of smart electric vehicle chargepoints from Ensto Chago, that can communicate with each other through cloud software to share available power between vehicles plugged-in at the same location, has been approved for grant support by the UK Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV). Chago says its charging units limit the need for electricity supply grid upgrades, as electric vehicles increase in popularity. They also pave the way for vehicles to store energy and feed it back to the grid in times of
  • June 25, 2018
    US Cities push for smarter poles
    US Cities The need to connect existing infrastructure has led various US transit authorities into imaginative alleyways: David Crawford examines some new roles for street furniture. US cities are vying with each other in developing schemes to create a new generation of connected places. Their strategies include taking advantage of their streetlight poles’ height and ubiquity to give them new roles in supporting intelligent nodes. They are now being equipped for collecting real-time data on key transport
  • March 8, 2013
    Siemens EV charging ahead in Corby
    Siemens is to provide the UK’s Electric Corby with its CP500A AC electric vehicle (EV) charging points at the first of ten locations in Corby, with a further eight locations being finalised. With the support of Corby Borough Council, the latest Siemens EV charging equipment will be installed over the coming weeks. According to Siemens, the network of Siemens EV charge points will help Corby strengthen its position as a leading edge location for ‘cleantech’ business investment, and bolster the wider Plugged
  • September 21, 2021
    L-Charge EV charger receives $1.5m boost
    L-Charge plans to develop a network in Paris, Berlin, New York, Amsterdam and London