AES and Camus EV study unlocks new savings

October 24, 2024

The AES Corporation (NYSE: AES), in collaboration with Camus, today released their joint EV Tipping Point Study. The study identifies the EV adoption level where the benefits of EV visibility and managed charging exceed the costs. The study found that EV monitoring and grid-optimized managed charging could defer $75 million in capital expenditures for an average of 8.5 years. This tipping point is driven by a subset of neighborhoods where EV adoption exceeds 10%, leading to concentrated demand increases.

“AES is leading the energy transition and at the forefront of providing innovative digital solutions for the grid,” said Colleen Lueken, Director of Market Development at AES. “Understanding how new customer resources like EVs affect our grid is critical to identifying upcoming challenges and opportunities. Our partnership with Camus helped us identify a strategy for managing new customer resources to improve grid reliability and affordability — turning a potential strain into flexibility that benefits all of our customers.”

Camus, a grid orchestration platform provider, leveraged AES Indiana’s geographic information system (GIS) and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) data to quantify the impacts of residential EV charging across future adoption scenarios. Key findings include:

• At 5% residential EV adoption, AES Indiana reaches a point where EV visibility and managed charging are essential to prevent grid strain and manage system costs.
• System-wide peak management and local distribution capacity management through integrated distribution planning increased total benefits by 3.8x versus peak management alone.
• The deferred upgrades on 43 feeders and nearly 5,900 service transformers for AES Indiana, is equivalent to $1,275 per year for each new EV adopted by AES Indiana residential customers.

The study also indicated that while time-of-use (TOU) rates can help reduce demand during system-wide peak periods, they may also create secondary peaks that require equipment upgrades to occur sooner, especially as EV adoption increases. Managed charging solutions were identified as a more scalable and efficient approach for mitigating both system-wide and local peaks, ensuring that the grid remains resilient without requiring expensive upgrades.

These findings offer a blueprint for other utilities navigating the challenges of increasing EV adoption. By leveraging grid visibility and orchestration, utilities can unlock significant cost savings, defer infrastructure upgrades and enhance overall grid reliability.

“Utilities are at a critical inflection point in the energy transition with the complexity of managing distributed energy resources like EVs. This study proves that real-time visibility and grid-aware coordination pay off quickly,” said Astrid Atkinson, Camus CEO. “Without clear insights into the quantifiable impacts of DERs on grid infrastructure, utilities risk missing key opportunities to optimize their systems and enhance affordability. This study underscores the vital role that data aggregation plays in empowering utilities to stay ahead of the curve for reliability, cost savings, and decarbonization of the grid. We’re thankful for this partnership with AES, and eager to replicate this success for utilities across the country.”

To read the full findings of the EV Tipping Point Study, click here.

About AES
The AES Corporation (NYSE: AES) is a Fortune 500 global energy company accelerating the future of energy. Together with our many stakeholders, we’re improving lives by delivering the greener, smarter energy solutions the world needs. Our diverse workforce is committed to continuous innovation and operational excellence, while partnering with our customers on their strategic energy transitions and continuing to meet their energy needs today. For more information, visit www.aes.com.

About Camus Energy
Camus’ grid orchestration software platform provides electric utilities with real-time grid awareness, day-ahead forecasting, coordinated management of local energy resources, and advanced planning insights. Bridging world-leading distributed systems expertise with deep power systems experience, Camus is empowering utilities to embrace the transition to a fully electrified, zero-carbon future. Learn more at www.camus.energy.