In India, presently, most of the motorized vehicles used for the transportation purpose are fuelled by petrol, diesel, and natural gas. These vehicles are considered to be the major source of air pollution because of high carbon emission by them. Further, the petroleum products, which are being used in the vehicles, are depleting at a very fast rate. We have petroleum resources available for next few years only. Therefore, there is a need to find an alternate way to run the motorized vehicles. Recently, the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan 2020 was notified by the Department of Heavy Industry, Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Government of India, to address the environmental challenges due to conventional motor vehicles and boost the production of reliable, affordable, and efficient electric vehicles (EVs). Recent breakthrough in the electric vehicle (EV) technology and affordable battery storage have shown a hope of mass level adoption of EVs. Accordingly, the Government of India has also taken various initiatives, such as FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid& Electric Vehicles) India Scheme to support hybrid/electric vehicles market development and Manufacturing eco-system. However, to the best of authors’ knowledge, there is no detailed study carried out to find the impact of large penetration of EVs on the future Indian electric power distribution system (EPDS).
The objective of the present report is to highlight the challenges to be faced by utilities in future due to large penetration of EVs in the Indian EPDS. To forecast the impact of EV penetration on EPDS in years 2025 and 2030, a detailed study has been carried out for six metro cities of India, i.e. Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad. Typical summer load curves of these cities for year 2018 are used to forecast their estimated load demands in summers of years 2025 and 2030, considering steady electric load growth. Subsequently, utilizing the current motorized vehicle growth rate in the cities, penetration of EVs for years 2025 and 2030 is also estimated. Considering consumer behaviors of various vehicle segments, their vehicle charging patterns are also estimated. Accordingly, multiple scenarios of charging the vehicle at home and charging the vehicle at charging stations are considered for carrying out the study. The estimated EV load, obtained from the study, is, then, compared with the estimated conventional electrical load in these cities and the analysis results are documented.
