Electric Vehicle (EV) Partnerships: Aligning Incentives to Unlock Value

This briefing argues that electric vehicles (EVs) can act as flexible grid resources through controlled charging and energy storage, provided that utilities, corporations, and cities collaborate. It highlights the potential for V1G and V2G technologies to improve grid efficiency and reliability. The document identifies significant barriers to adoption, including regulatory environments that may incentivize building new capacity over managing EV load, high start-up costs for fleet owners, and uncertainties regarding the role of utilities. To overcome these, it suggests performance-based incentives for utilities, new rate designs for customers, and strategic partnerships to share data and infrastructure.

• Electric vehicles can serve as flexible grid resources through controlled charging (V1G) and energy storage. Controlled charging helps avoid peak load and fills system troughs to improve grid utilization, while bidirectional energy flow (Vehicle to Grid or V2G) allows batteries to provide power back to the grid, although V2G faces technical challenges regarding battery wear and behavioral challenges regarding owner consent.
• Several large-scale initiatives are driving EV momentum, including the Transportation Electrification Accord signed by 96 businesses, a Multi-State MOU involving nine states aiming for 3.3 million EVs by 2025, and a $2 billion investment in infrastructure and education by Electrify America over 10 years.

APA

World Resources Institute (2019). Electric Vehicle (EV) Partnerships: Aligning Incentives to Unlock Value. https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/CPC_EV_Narrative_-_1.11.19_-_CB.pdf

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Electric Vehicle (EV) Partnerships: Aligning Incentives to Unlock Value. 2019. https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/CPC_EV_Narrative_-_1.11.19_-_CB.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Electric Vehicle (EV) Partnerships: Aligning Incentives to Unlock Value |date=15 August 2019 |url=https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/CPC_EV_Narrative_-_1.11.19_-_CB.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitute2019electric, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Electric Vehicle (EV) Partnerships: Aligning Incentives to Unlock Value}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2019}, month = aug, url = {https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/CPC_EV_Narrative_-_1.11.19_-_CB.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }