Peak Shaving & Load Management: How smart charging stations smooth out power peaks
Electromobility is the driving force behind the modern transport revolution, yet it presents companies and grid operators with a logistical Herculean task. When multiple vehicles charge simultaneously at high power, enormous strain is placed on the building’s grid connection. Without intelligent control, there is a risk of either expensive grid fees or even local power outages.
To solve this problem, two concepts are coming into focus: load management for charging stations and peak shaving. For users, these processes are often completely unnoticeable when they visit the respective locations; they simply benefit from a reliable energy supply.
What is load management for charging stations?
Modern load management acts as the brain of the charging infrastructure. It ensures that the total available electrical power is optimally distributed across all active charging points. Instead of rigidly allocating maximum energy to each vehicle, the system controls the flow according to demand. The goal is to manage the charging power so that the building’s grid connection is never overloaded, while the vehicles are still charged as quickly as possible.
While a static system merely divides a fixed maximum value rigidly, dynamic load management goes a crucial step further. It communicates in real time with the building’s energy management system. If, for example, a production facility or the office air conditioning consumes a lot of electricity, smart charging stations automatically reduce their power output. Once internal consumption drops again, more energy is immediately made available to the vehicles.
Peak Shaving: The solution to expensive peak loads
So-called peak shaving at charging stations is the supreme discipline of energy optimisation. This involves smoothing out short-term, extremely high electricity demands, known as peak loads. This is particularly relevant for businesses, as grid fees are often calculated based on the highest measured peak. If these power peaks are smoothed out, the fleet’s operating costs drop massively.
The benefits of a grid-friendly charging infrastructure
In this section, we examine why investing in intelligent technology is worthwhile not only ecologically, but above all, economically:
- Avoidance of expensive grid expansion costs: You can operate more charging points without having to expand the physical grid connection at great expense.
- Reduction of capacity charges: By smoothing out peak loads, you noticeably reduce your monthly electricity costs.
- Maximum utilisation of PV systems: Intelligent load management prioritises charging with your own solar power.
- Greater grid stability: You operate a grid-friendly charging infrastructure that relieves the public power grid instead of straining it.
- Scalability: Your HPC charging infrastructure grows with your fleet, as new charging points are easily integrated via software.
Battery-buffered charging solutions for High Power Charging
A particularly innovative solution for locations with a weak grid connection is battery-buffered charging infrastructure. Here, battery storage systems for charging stations are used as intermediate buffers. The storage unit charges slowly from the grid during periods of low load and releases the energy in bursts during High Power Charging (HPC).
This principle enables ultra-fast charging without the local transformer having to work at its limit. Such battery-buffered charging stations are ideal for the public fast-charging infrastructure, as they make a location “charge-ready” within a very short time, without having to accept years of waiting for a stronger grid connection.
Smart Charging as standard
To make the mobility transition economically viable, peak shaving in e-mobility is indispensable today. Those who can smooth out peak loads and rely on smart charging stations protect the grid while simultaneously saving real money. Thanks to simple app operation, fair prices, and a growing number of modernised locations, the charging infrastructure becomes a successful project for operators and drivers alike.