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ELECTRIC VEHICLES NETWORK / 36 / SEPTEMBER 2019 U K emissions have been in steady decline in recent years. However, transport remains a black mark against our efforts to tackle climate change. Transport alone is now our biggest source of emissions – accounting for 26 per cent of all UK greenhouse gases – sparking a ra• of new decarbonisation strategies and the need for a surge in EV uptake. National Grid's Future Energy Systems (FES) report predicts there will be 35 million EVs on British roads by 2050 – a figure As DNOs present Ofgem with their electric vehicle (EV) readiness documents, illustrating how the transport revolution can be effectively managed, Patrick Erwin, policy and markets director at Northern Powergrid, outlines key policies that would ensure a fair, and properly managed transition. that could see an additional 6.5GW of demand at peak time and an increased annual power demand of approximately 88TWh. 1 This presents one of the biggest challenges faced by operators of power infrastruc- ture since the conception of our electricity network. Despite these grid balancing hurdles, there are also a wealth of opportunities. For example, the same 35 million EVs, each with a modest 40kWh battery, represent enough storage to run today's electricity system for a day and a half. To capitalise on this un - tapped future resource, Northern Powergrid last year launched a world-first £9.8 million trial alongside Nissan, Newcastle Uni- versity, Imperial College London, UK Power Networks, National Grid and Nuvve. The project will see the installation of 1,000 vehi - cle-to-grid (V2G) chargers to put the UK at the forefront of the EV revolution and demonstrate how this new fleet of vehicles can be fully integrated into the electric - ity grid. Through this and other projects, we are showing how EVs can smooth peaks and troughs in supply and demand, drive down the cost of clean technologies and increase the integration of renew- able energy on the UK grid. Northern Powergrid also Solving the EV charging jigsaw announced three initiatives to encourage its 2,500 employees to get hands-on with EVs, while monitoring the impact on the network. The first of these initia - tives is to provide EV charging facilities at 11 of our larger sites to give employees the confi- dence to go electric. This is supported by a second initiative to install 16 onsite V2G charging points, which will contribute to a trial of best use of the technol- ogy in fleet operations. Coupled with the ongoing process of fleet electrification, this is providing valuable data that will ensure our network is able to effec - tively manage the EV transition.