Optimising electricity markets for electric vehicles

Decarbonising transportation is a cornerstone in the transition to sustainable energy. With this goal, Fondation Enovos, under the aegis of Fondation de Luxembourg, is providing support to the INDUCTIVE research project of the University's Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT). This research project aims to leverage electric car charging's flexibility to optimise demand, particularly by charging cars during periods of high supply in the electricity markets.

The automotive industry believes that the number of electric vehicles in circulation will continue to grow in the coming years, increasing the demand for electricity. At the same time, the production of renewable energy sources is also growing. However favourable they may be to a sustainable energy transition, both developments have an impact on the volatility of the electricity supply that markets and networks have to cope with. For example, simultaneous charging of electric cars during a period without sun and wind could increase pressure on the markets and drive up electricity prices.

The INDUCTIVE (Incentivised charging scheduling for electric vehicles) project seeks solutions to control charging by harnessing flexibility. Charging could be steered towards periods of high or even excess supply in the markets in order to better balance the energy markets, bringing supply and demand closer together. These periods of oversupply generally coincide with periods of high renewable energy production. Electric vehicles could contribute to the electricity markets' stability while allowing more efficient use of renewable energy sources. These renewable energy sources could then be directly consumed or even stored through the vehicle's battery. The user would make storage capacity available according to his or her degree of flexibility regarding charging.

The project's added value lies in the optimisation of the country's electricity demand, particularly in relation to the charging of electric vehicles. This will lead to the decarbonisation of transportation and more efficient use of renewable energy production.

The INDUCTIVE project could eventually enable users to benefit from market and network optimisation by developing a tariff structure that takes into account and even rewards charging flexibility.

The project will last for two years.

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