Optimal Sizing of a Battery-Supported Electric Vehicle Charging Hub with a Limited-Capacity Grid Connection

Abstract

The ever-increasing electrification of society has been a cause of utility grid issues in many regions around the world. With the increased adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the Netherlands, many new charge points (CPs) are required. A common installation practice of CPs is to group multiple CPs together on a single grid connection, the so-called charging hub. To further ensure EVs are adequately charged, various control strategies can be employed, or a stationary battery can be connected to this network. A pilot project in Amsterdam was used as a case study to validate the Python model developed in this study using the measured data. This paper presents an optimisation of the battery energy storage capacity and the grid connection capacity for such a P&R-based charging hub with various load profiles and various battery system costs. A variety of battery control strategies were simulated using both the optimal system sizing and the case study sizing. A recommendation for a control strategy is proposed.