Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 6TH - 12TH DECEMBER 2019 | 23 Operations & Assets Energy retailers and the EV opportunity A table of energy retailers at Accelerate19 – hosted by event partner Cognizant – agreed that EVs present a major opportunity to escape the pro tability sinkhole embodied by the traditional domestic energy supply market. All attendees had live tari• s and charging o• ers for EV owners and reported broadly posi- tive consumer experience of the di• erential pricing models included. However, the group also agreed that sig- ni cant barriers stand in the way of accessing greater commercial value from EV products and services. First and foremost, these include scale, because despite signi cant uptake in the number of EVs on UK roads, their penetra- tions still stands at only around 2 per cent of the market. Additionally, there were some major worries about the accessibility of bigger EV- related revenue opportunities, especially those relating to flexibility markets. Participants agreed that signi cant hype around the potential of vehicle-to-grid (V2G) charging, for example, masks the fact that the appropriate charge point technology is currently prohibitively expensive for consumers (although some thought it is reaching a tipping point for a• ordability in the realm of commer- cial fleets). Some suppliers also observed that most EV models do not include the inverter technology that would make V2G charging easier and called on greater forethought from original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). Another big issue for suppliers hoping to play strongly in EV-enabled energy flexibility markets were recent "regressive" regulatory steps, including those in Ofgem's targeted charging review, which one debate participant said had cut their potential EV-related revenues "in half". Other big discussion topics as the group considered what steps might liberate and make more active a market for EV products and services in the UK included scope for greater collaboration with local authorities, automotive OEMs, and energy networks. There were also suggestions that the move towards open data principles for "state of charge" and local grid constraints could be helpful, although there was signi cant caution around the potential of this to undermine commercial interests. The standout ask from all participants, however, in order to create the volume of engagement needed to make EV markets economically interesting, was that government should take action to properly incentivise uptake. A range of di• erent options were tabled, from a strong carbon price to tax-free EVs alongside heavy taxation of petrol and diesel vehicles, but all agreed that a "bold move" from government could be the key to unlocking the signi cant commercial, consumer and environmental bene ts from the electri cation of transport. In association with Centrica Business Solutions, Cognizant, MINI and UK Power Networks Services 2. Ensuring interoperability: hardware, data and transactional; 3. Delivering a coherent planning and governance infrastructure for EVs. A report with suggestions to address these important areas for EV success is waiting in the wings until a• er the general election. But as New admitted to the Accelerate audi- ence: "It's one thing to come up with some "Energy suppliers have a big opportunity to supplement their traditional business models with products and services associated with electric vehicles. But they need to ensure they fully understand the end- to-end customer experience of these new propositions and think carefully about how they monetise EVs as behind the meter fl exible assets by acting as aggregators of supply and demand." Arvind Pal Singh, head of utilities consulting, Cognizant continued overleaf proposals. Turning them into action is quite another." The next challenge for the EV Energy Taskforce, therefore, will be to amplify the progress it has so far made in aligning mul- tiple stakeholder groups and gaining buy-in to its vision. Discussions at Accelerate showed that the What's worrying Philip New? Adoption of EVs is ramping up, infrastructure is spreading and new ownership models for EVs are coming to market. It's all good news for the EV enthusiasts behind the government- commissioned Electric Vehicle Energy Task- force, which has been tasked with ensuring maximum national bene† t from the transition to electric transport. But at Accelerate19, the taskforce's chairman, Philip New, admitted he is concerned that continued EV rollout without strategic intervention could lead to unintended consequences. "I worry that in the excitement and glamour of rolling out the hardware, we forget that there is an awful lot of think- ing that needs to be done to ensure the underlying standards, ways of working and interactions between moving parts are in place," he said. "We are on the cusp of a fundamen- tal change, not only to the infrastructure required for this wholly new transport technology, but also to energy markets as a whole – and EVs could be a catalyst for that energy system transformation. "If we mess this up, not only will we get in the way of the transport transi- tion, we could also get in the way of the transformation of the energy sector." What's worrying Philip New? Adoption of EVs is ramping up, infrastructure is spreading and new ownership models for EVs news for the EV enthusiasts behind the government- commissioned Electric Vehicle Energy Task- force, which has been

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