Electromobility / green electricity
Intelligent charging saves fossil fuels
Charging electric cars can overload the electricity grid and lead to fossil fuel power plants having to step in. This is unnecessary and leads to high costs for grid operators. BMW and Tennet want to change this.
Car manufacturer BMW and grid operator Tennet are working together to test an intelligent charging control system for electric vehicles. It was specially developed for BMW Charging and controls the charging processes of electric cars in such a way that the power grid is kept stable and electricity from renewable energy sources is used optimally at the same time. The control system is already installed as standard in the BMW i3.
Preventing grid bottlenecks
With this cooperation, BMW and Tennet want to provide customers with low-cost charging power on the one hand and relieve the load on the electricity grid on the other. The charging control system prevents or reduces the charging of electric cars in the event of grid bottlenecks and thus prevents additional fossil fuels from having to be switched on when the grid is under high load. The charging process continues when the bottleneck in the grid has been bridged - ideally when sufficient quantities of electricity from wind or solar energy are available. It makes no difference whether the vehicle is charged via a public charging station, a BMW Wallbox or a conventional socket.
Cost savings through smart charging concept
BMW has been successfully testing smart charging in over 300 electric cars in California for several years. As part of a pilot project, BMW and Tennet recently also tested intelligent charging control in Germany. With reduced charging processes in the event of grid bottlenecks, the use of fossil reserve power plants can be avoided. The output from a so-called 'redispatch' currently costs German electricity grid operators around 500 million euros. In addition to lower redispatch costs, the integration of electric vehicles into the grid and intelligent charging control offer the potential to reduce the expansion of power lines and keep the electricity price stable. In addition, the grid-stabilizing services provided can form the basis of energy industry business models: With intelligently controlled charging, electrified vehicles can generate remuneration.













