The potential impacts of a high penetration of electric vehicles on the Newfoundland Transmission System

Carter, Matthew Paul (2020) The potential impacts of a high penetration of electric vehicles on the Newfoundland Transmission System. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

The deployment of electric vehicles is expected to drastically increase throughout the developed world for the foreseeable future. This trend is attributed to the growing acceptance of electric vehicles driven by the emergence of numerous environmental, economic and technical incentives promoting their adoption. This revolutionary change will likely have a monumental impact on most power systems. A large scaled uptake of electric vehicles could also prove beneficial as they have the capability to instantaneously supply active and reactive power back to the grid using Vehicle-2-Grid technology. This thesis will focus on the Newfoundland Transmission System and investigate the positive and negative impacts associated with a high penetration of electric vehicles. Load flow and power system stability simulations were performed using PSS®E to support this investigation by quantifying the effect of varying levels of electric vehicle penetration in the province. The results of the load flow analysis concluded that, in the absence of any demand-side management strategies, substantial system capacity upgrades would likely be required to avoid jeopardizing system reliability. The power system stability analysis revealed that a large amount of electric vehicles with Vehicle-2-Grid capability could collectively be utilized to minimize or avoid under frequency load shedding following the sudden loss of the Labrador Island-Link HV dc bipole. A strong correlation was discovered between the net total of HVdc power imports/exports (Net DC) and the total number of connected electric vehicles that would be required to avoid under frequency load shedding on the Island Interconnected System. The investigation has ultimately demonstrated that without the necessary power system integration or demand-side management strategies, a high penetration of electric vehicles in Newfoundland could lead to needless capital expenditures. Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro would also forgo the benefits of improved frequency response provided through Vehicle-to-Grid technology.

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