As more people buy electric vehicles, utility companies have to deliver more power to charge them. Ameren Illinois Director of Business Development Mike Abba says if too many people need too much electricity at once, they could max out the power line capacity. So, there are incentives to charge vehicles overnight instead of right away when people get home from work. The company will give a rebate or a credit for charging from 11pm to 7am.
Audio PlayerThe program is possible because smart meters know when you’re using electricity and the power companies pay different rates for electricity at different times of the day. Eventually, power companies will have to run more wires to deliver more power, but shifting the times when people use some of it evens out the load. Maxing out the power grid would likely lead to blackouts.
There’s more information about Ameren’s program for electric vehicles at this link.
Mike Abba says more about electric vehicles in this interview: