As more consumers purchase EVs, traditional power grids become increasingly complex to manage.
And it’s only just beginning: EV sales rose by 55% from 2021 to 2022 and are projected to reach 350M on the road by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency. With road transportation accounting for nearly 12% of global emissions, the impact of EVs cannot be understated.
Utilities play a pivotal role in the EV revolution as they manage both their grid and customer processes that enable EV charging. As electric vehicles proliferate, what opportunities lay ahead for the utilities and energy providers that service them?
When managed intelligently, EVs become a grid-edge resource
Transport electrification will become a huge driver for capital investment in the distribution grid, providing funds for grid modernization and automation investments that make distribution grids more reliable and resilient. Over the short term, however, faster-than-expected EV adoption could easily create operational challenges such as two-way power flows and accelerated degradation of grid asset condition or performance on overloaded feeders.
Artificial intelligence and analytics can help grid operators detect where DERs and EVs exist on the distribution networks to help inform asset management, field service ops, and infrastructure upgrades. Additionally, an advanced distribution management system and IT infrastructure can optimize power flows and minimize impacts to power quality and reliability. This helps transform EVs from a network reliability concern into a major benefit – providing energy to draw upon when demand is high and storing excess when supply exceeds demand.
EVs are an untapped revenue growth opportunity
According to a recent IDC survey carried out for Oracle, revenue growth is the number 1 strategic priority for utilities globally. EVs create opportunities for utilities and others in the energy value chain to launch new revenue streams and improve customer stickiness. Utilities can expand on customer lifecycle value through upselling new EV energy products and services.
Incumbent energy suppliers around the world that want to tap into this value must evolve from their traditional meter-to-cash business to a broader lead-to-cash process that proactively identifies, engages and educates EV owners.
Customers expect their energy partner to prioritize sustainability
Many customers are actively taking steps to reduce their own carbon footprint and expect a helping hand from their energy partner. This is especially true for younger generations – Millennials and Gen Z, according to a recent Global Utilities Consumer Trends Report.
For EV customers, this can take many forms such as influencing charging behavior when costs are low and green energy is plentiful, and rewarding customers with insights powered by AI, disaggregation and behavioral science on avoided carbon emissions.
Launching new EV offerings requires end-to-end, integrated platforms
Unfortunately, many of the traditional applications in use today provide asynchronous views of the customer and network, making it difficult for energy providers to move ‘beyond commodity’ to launch new EV offerings.
To manage this transition, utilities need to move beyond siloed IT systems for network and customer operations and instead adopt a holistic, customer-centric approach to capture and retain EV consumers.
Oracle and Tech Mahindra have recently launched an Integrated EV2Grid Management solution to help utilities, charge point and fleet operators alike capture and retain more EV customers.
With an integrated, end-to-end platform, utilities can close the loop between customer and network ops to automatically identify EVs on their network, proactively onboard EV owners to new rates and offers, serve as a trusted advisor with rate coaching and charging location recommendations – all while maintaining the safety and reliability of the grid.
It’s undisputed that electric vehicles are one of many factors disrupting the traditional ways we use energy. Forward thinking utilities and energy providers can succeed in this transition with the right priorities – and platforms – in place.
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