EV charging approaches in remote regions – Analysis of capacity, cost and logistics

Abstract: With countries across the world finding pathways to counter CO2 emissions, sustainable mobility has become a critical topic for leaders, policymakers, and industries. The development of Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV’s) is seen as an important and effective way through which reliance on fossil fuels and thereby related CO2 emissions can be reduced. Statistics show that the number EV’s on the roads are expected to increase at a very high rate. However, the lack of access to charging stations could prove to be an obstacle for the growth of the EV market and the charging infrastructure must develop simultaneously along with the growth of EV’s. Power grids would need to undergo a major overhaul to support the charging infrastructure, in particular infrastructure for fast charging and this process could take many years. The aim of this research is to look at solutions which can be implemented in a short period of time by operating with either a weak grid connection or without any grid support. After carrying out an extensive literature review, this paper investigates the feasibility of charging batteries or generating hydrogen from energy parks in remote locations and using electric trucks for transportation of the same to the charging station. The results show that using ESS packs is more favorable over hydrogen when the distance between the energy park and the station is less while hydrogen performs better when both the overall energy demand and the distance between the energy park and the station is higher. Further on, the sensitivity analysis for both solutions shows that varying certain parameters could help in making the ESS or Hydrogen system more feasible even during unfavorable conditions. With results showing a good scope for both the systems and recent implementation of weak grid ESS powered stations, further analysis can be undertaken to see if these systems work effectively in other industries like the telecom industry.