Regional Electric Vehicle Energy Consumption and Carbon Emissions in Great Britain

Abstract

This work presents the regional differences in electric vehicle (EV) real-world energy consumption and associated carbon emissions during charging in Great Britain (GB). A model was developed considering the variability in road traffic, ambient temperature, and electricity grid profile between the GB regions on EV carbon emissions under uncontrolled and smart scenarios. The results show the variations in EV energy consumption and carbon emissions impacted by where, when, and how an EV is driven and charged. Carbon emission reduction varies from 5% to 33% between the regions when switching to delayed smart charging, shifting the charging process outside peak hours. An optimised smart charging that moves the charging events to periods of low grid carbon intensity reduces carbon emissions from 6% to 55%, affected by region grid carbon intensity and energy consumption.