Virginia Regulator Launches Inquiry into Impact of Electric Vehicles on Utility Services

The Virginia State Corporation Commission opened a proceeding on March 24 to explore the impact of increased electric vehicle deployment on the affordability and reliability of utility electric services. The proceeding will address a broad range of issues including existing development and projected growth, rate design, storage-specific issues, and public charging stations.

The commission is seeking comment on several topics including:

• Current level of demand from EV charging and how it is expected to grow over the next five to twenty years
• Current level of public charging infrastructure and the expected growth
• Rate designs that incentivize EV charging and how they can be structured to encourage off-peak charging
• Rate designs to compensate EV owners for power delivered to the grid
• Need for regulation to prevent cost-shifting to consumers who do not own EVs
• Availability of battery storage from EVs for grid use and technological impediments to grid use at scale
• Technical studies to ensure safe interconnection to utility distribution systems to provide storage
• Utility-sponsored initiatives, such as peak shaving program, to reliably call on EVs to provide power to the grid
• Role of utilities in the deployment of public charging stations

The commission noted that it is timely to examine the issues in a comprehensive manner to inform future proceedings in which they may be relevant. Comments are due by June 23.