December 13
Managing the EV Surge: How Duke Energy Florida Is Reducing Peak Demand
Top consumer smart energy news hand-selected and brought to you by the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative.
Member News
As electric vehicle (EV) ownership accelerates across the U.S., utilities face the critical challenge of managing the increased energy load. For Duke Energy Florida, which serves nearly two million customers in one of the country’s fastest-growing EV markets, finding a sustainable way to manage this growth was essential. EV adoption rates in Florida are projected to continue rising, with Guidehouse Insights estimating EV registrations to surpass 3.6 million by 2032.
Texas public power utility CPS Energy has entered into a long-term storage capacity agreement with OCI Energy for a 120-MW/480-MWh battery energy storage project called Alamo City ESS LLC, which will be located in south Bexar County, Texas. Additionally, as part of a related community benefits agreement, OCI Energy will contribute $250,000 to the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Energy utilities in the U.S. face a daunting challenge: balancing rising energy demand with a strained grid, integrating renewable energy sources, and navigating an uncertain regulatory landscape – especially as a new administration enters office. To ensure a reliable and sustainable energy future, utilities and consumers alike are required to make countless decisions daily.
Avantus will partner with Arizona Public Service (APS) for a power purchase agreement for the Kitt Solar Project, the entities announced this week. The agreement will see the Kitt Solar Project in Pinal County, Arizona create 100MWac/130MWdc of solar and 400 MWh of energy storage in facilities that Avantus will develop and construct starting in 2025. Operations at the facility are expected to begin in 2026.
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Industry News
At a Tesla high-speed EV charging site in California’s Central Valley, Pacific Gas & Electric has switched on a pilot project that could mark a major advance in getting big customers connected to stressed-out power grids. It’s called Flex Connect, and it’s based on a simple concept – let customers control how much power they use so that they don’t exceed what the grid can safely deliver from hour to hour.
Electric vehicle maker Rivian opened the first of its next-generation EV charging locations, which will be accessible to drivers of all compatible EVs, the company announced in a press release. The new Rivian Adventure Network chargers debuted at the company’s Joshua Tree Charging Outpost in California with additional charging locations planned in Texas, Colorado, Illinois, Montana, Pennsylvania, Michigan and New York.
Would you be more likely to buy a home if it came with backup power? A homebuilding company and a virtual power plant provider are teaming up for a test run. Lennar has announced plans to equip select communities in the Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth area with home backup battery systems provided by Base Power, a Texas-based distributed battery storage company that launched last year.
Electric vehicles accounted for almost nine percent of U.S. light-duty vehicle sales in the third quarter of this year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said recently. Combined sales of hybrid vehicles, plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles increased from 19.1 percent of total new light-duty vehicle sales in the second quarter to 21.2 percent in the third quarter.
