Opinion: How variable pricing at Hydro-Québec could give electric cars a boost - lithium ion battery price
In a report released last week, the energy commission in Quebec depends on the time of day and the demand for electricity. Hydro-
Quebec plans to come up with a detailed plan this summer.
The idea is to use prices to motivate users to change their habits, use less electricity during peak demand times, and use more electricity during off-peak hours. peak hours.
By introducing such a "peak --
Load "pricing, utilities can limit new power generation that must be installed in the next few years.
But the benefits of the move do not stop: it can provide indirect incentives for buying electric vehicles at the same time.
The connection to the automotive market is through lithium-ion batteries, where the life expectancy of lithium-ion batteries is about eight years.
Since then, the battery has lost about 80 of its original capacity, has a lower efficiency in the charging and discharge cycles, and has not provided a sufficient boost to acceleration.
But that doesn't mean they need to stop using it completely.
If refurbished, this battery can be stored for another 10 years of electricity and can be used in commercial buildings or in individual homes.
In home and commercial use, the capacity decay is slow because the demand pressure on the battery is small --
For example, an instant surge is unnecessary.
In order to achieve this "second life"
This re-used battery for actual purchase and installation as a power storage device-
The investment of users needs to be rewarded.
This means that installing storage devices should be cheaper than paying for peak fees, resulting in relatively smooth power supply throughout the day
The load price during the peak period, due to the reduction in use at that time, the power flow is uneven.
When there is sufficient energy, if the electricity supplier provides electricity at low cost, this may happen when there is a shortage of energy due to a surge in demand.
For example, if Hydro-
The province of Quebec will charge 4 cents per kilowatt hour when it leaves work.
During peak hours, 12 cents per kwh during peak hours, then the difference may encourage the installation of refurbished batteries.
Users can then charge the battery for 4 cents and use it to avoid paying 12 cents during peak hours.
The resulting need to re-use the battery will reduce the total cost of owning an electric vehicle.
Now, the battery accounts for a large part of the production cost of the car, and the cost of installing a new battery is very high.
However, the secondary market for batteries will provide additional incentives for potential car buyers to consider electric vehicles.
If the price of electricity is the same at any time, then the motivation for individuals or businesses to adopt this storage method is very small.
Successive Québec governments have said that Québec should be a leader in sustainable development.
The price mechanism is usually more effective than the top
The regulations adopted in the National Assembly on 2016.
The bill will require a specific proportion of sales by car dealers in the form of electric vehicles starting in 2018.
But these regulations have little impact on total emissions.
On the one hand, if manufacturers sell electric vehicles in Quebec that exceed the requirements of federal regulations, they will be able to sell fewer electric vehicles elsewhere.
The Montreal Institute of Economics recently released a study explaining why direct purchase subsidies for electric vehicles are inefficient and expensive ways to reduce greenhouse gases.
But there is a way to promote these cars without wasting taxpayers' money.
Price mechanisms like hydropower
Quebec says it will implement effective use of resources that can be encouraged
It not only limits the need to increase the power generation capacity of the network, but also stimulates the electric vehicle market without taxpayer subsidies.