Vehicle-to-Grid: A Sociotechnical Transition Beyond Electric Mobility (Energy, Climate and the Environment)

This book defines and charts the barriers and future of vehicle-to-grid technology: a technology that could dramatically reduce emissions, create revenue, and accelerate the adoption of battery electric cars. This technology connects the electric power grid and the transportation system in ways that will enable electric vehicles to store renewable energy and offer valuable services to the electricity grid and its markets. To understand the complex features of this emergent technology, the authors explore the current status and prospect of vehicle-to-grid, and detail the sociotechnical barriers that may impede its fruitful deployment. The book concludes with a policy roadmap to advise decision-makers on how to optimally implement vehicle-to-grid and capture its benefits to society while attempting to avoid the impediments discussed earlier in the book. Lance Noel is a postdoctoral researcher at Aarhus University, Denmark, where he is lead researcher on a $1.6 million grant on the sociotechnical benefits and barriers of electric vehicles and vehicle-to-grid in the Nordic region. Gerardo Zarazua de Rubens is a doctoral fellow at Aarhus University, Denmark, working on energy and transport systems, data analytics and business development. His recent focus has been on Electric Vehicle and Vehicle-to-Grid implementation in Europe. Johannes Kester is a postdoctoral researcher at Aarhus University, Denmark, working on sociotechnical transformations in electricity and alternative transport systems, energy policy, and the role of security in these transformations. Benjamin K. Sovacool is Professor of Energy Policy at the School of Business, Management, and Economics, University of Sussex, UK. He is also Director of the Center for Energy Technologies and Professor of Business and Social Sciences in the Department of Business Development and Technology at Aarhus University in Denmark. Acknowledgements 6 About This Book 7 Contents 9 About the Authors 14 List of Figures 17 List of Tables 20 1 History, Definition, and Status of V2G 40 1.1 Defining V2G 40 1.1.1 Incorporating V2G to the EV 41 1.1.2 Aggregation 44 1.1.3 Auditing and Metering 46 1.1.4 V2G in Practice 48 1.2 V2G, Power Markets and Applications 49 1.2.1 Electricity Markets and V2G Suitability 49 1.2.2 Long-Term Storage, Renewable Energy, and Other Grid Applications 52 1.2.3 Beyond the Grid: Other Concepts Related to V2G 54 1.3 History and Development of EVs and V2G 58 1.4 Actors and Roles of V2G 60 1.4.1 Primary Actors: EV Owners, Aggregators, and the Electricity Grid 60 1.4.2 Secondary Actors: Government, the EV Industry, and Electricity Producers 63 1.5 Conclusion 64 References 65 2 The Potential Benefits of V2G 71 2.1 Summarizing the Benefits of V2G 71 2.1.1 Technical Benefits: Storage Superiority and Grid Efficiency 74 2.1.2 Economic Benefits: EV Owners and Societal Savings 76 2.1.3 Environment and Health Benefits: Sustainability in Electricity and Transport 81 2.1.4 Other Benefits and Perceived Benefits 89 2.2 Benefits in Motion: From Fleets to Individuals and Beyond 91 2.3 V2G and the Grid 93 2.4 Conclusion 96 References 97 3 The Technical Challenges to V2G 103 3.1 Battery Degradation 104 3.2 Charger Efficiency 110 3.3 Aggregation and Communication 113 3.3.1 Aggregation and Scaling 113 3.3.2 Communication Standards 116 3.4 V2G in a Digital Society 119 3.5 Conclusion 122 References 123 4 The Economic and Business Challenges to V2G 128 4.1 Evaluating V2G Costs and Revenues 129 4.1.1 EV Costs and Benefits 129 4.1.2 Adding V2G Costs and Benefits 131 4.1.3 Additional V2G Costs 134 4.1.4 The Evolving Nature of V2G Costs and Benefits 137 4.2 V2G Business Models 138 4.2.1 Pricing and Revenue Models 139 4.2.2 Ownership Structure: Aggregators and Other Actors 143 4.2.3 Defining the Evolving Market: Integration with Other Technologies 146 4.3 Conclusion 148 References 150 5 The Regulatory and Political Challenges to V2G 154 5.1 V2G and Regulatory Frameworks 155 5.1.1 Regulating V2G and Energy Storage 155 5.1.2 Ownership of V2G and Energy Storage 157 5.2 Market Design Challenges 159 5.2.1 Proper Valuation of Ancillary Services 159 5.2.2 Double Taxation, Curtailment and Capacity Markets 161 5.2.3 Clarifying Aggregator Roles and Responsibilities 164 5.3 Other V2G Regulatory and Legal Challenges 165 5.4 Political Challenges of V2G 167 5.4.1 Broader Policy Coordination and Political Will 167 5.4.2 Specific V2G Policies 169 5.5 Conclusion 171 References 172 6 Consumers, Society and V2G 177 6.1 Consumer Perspectives of V2G 177 6.1.1 Ambivalence and Low Consumer Awareness 178 6.1.2 Intermediaries and V2G Diffusion 180 6.2 Conceptualizing the Consumer in a V2G System 182 6.2.1 Diffusion of Innovation 182 6.2.2 Social Construction of Technology 185 6.2.3 The Multi-level Perspective User-Typology 187 6.3 Increasing Consumer Knowledge and Acceptance 188 6.3.1 User Innovation and Tinkering 189 6.3.2 Accruing User Experience and Involvement 192 6.3.3 Targeted Information Campaigns 192 6.3.4 Involving Users in Pilot Projects 194 6.3.5 Promoting V2G as a Conspicuous Good 195 6.4 Conclusion 199 References 199 7 V2G Deployment Pathways and Policy Recommendations 202 7.1 Synthesizing Barriers Across Actors 203 7.2 Toward a Stylized V2G Policy Mix 207 7.3 Five Global Development Pathways and V2G Futures 213 7.3.1 Conservative Backlash 216 7.3.2 V2G Remains a Niche 218 7.3.3 High V2G, Dirty Grid 220 7.3.4 High V2G, Renewables in a Traditional but Decarbonized Grid 221 7.3.5 The Super-Smart Grid 222 7.4 Conclusion 223 References 224 8 Realizing and Problematizing a V2G Future 226 8.1 Key Themes and Current Expert Perspectives: Benefits, Barriers, and Policies 227 8.1.1 Compelling Potential Benefits 227 8.1.2 Sobering Barriers and Challenges 230 8.1.3 Calibrating Policy Mixes 234 8.2 Problematizing V2G in the Context of Energy Transitions 238 8.2.1 Elitism and Inequitable Access 238 8.2.2 Loss of Privacy and Cybersecurity 241 8.2.3 Affirming Conventional Automobility 243 8.2.4 Vulnerable Groups and Pollution 244 8.2.5 Toward a Just and Sustainable V2G Policy 245 8.3 Thematic Social Research Gaps 247 8.3.1 Carbon and Health Impacts of V2G 247 8.3.2 User Behavior 249 8.3.3 Visions and Narratives 251 8.3.4 Social Justice 255 8.3.5 Gender Norms 256 8.3.6 Urban Resilience, Disasters, and Emergency Capacity 257 8.4 Methodological Research Gaps 258 8.4.1 Broadening the Set of V2G “Cases” 258 8.4.2 Overcoming Transformative Failures 259 8.4.3 Toward Interdisciplinary, Multi-method Approaches 260 8.5 Conclusion 263 References 265 Index 269 Front Matter ....Pages i-xlii History, Definition, and Status of V2G (Lance Noel, Gerardo Zarazua de Rubens, Johannes Kester, Benjamin K. Sovacool)....Pages 1-31 The Potential Benefits of V2G (Lance Noel, Gerardo Zarazua de Rubens, Johannes Kester, Benjamin K. Sovacool)....Pages 33-64 The Technical Challenges to V2G (Lance Noel, Gerardo Zarazua de Rubens, Johannes Kester, Benjamin K. Sovacool)....Pages 65-89 The Economic and Business Challenges to V2G (Lance Noel, Gerardo Zarazua de Rubens, Johannes Kester, Benjamin K. Sovacool)....Pages 91-116 The Regulatory and Political Challenges to V2G (Lance Noel, Gerardo Zarazua de Rubens, Johannes Kester, Benjamin K. Sovacool)....Pages 117-139 Consumers, Society and V2G (Lance Noel, Gerardo Zarazua de Rubens, Johannes Kester, Benjamin K. Sovacool)....Pages 141-165 V2G Deployment Pathways and Policy Recommendations (Lance Noel, Gerardo Zarazua de Rubens, Johannes Kester, Benjamin K. Sovacool)....Pages 167-190 Realizing and Problematizing a V2G Future (Lance Noel, Gerardo Zarazua de Rubens, Johannes Kester, Benjamin K. Sovacool)....Pages 191-233 Back Matter ....Pages 235-237