ELECTRIC VEHICLE GRID SIMULATOR: MODEL OVERVIEW

The EV Grid Simulator is a tool developed by the World Resources Institute and the UPS Foundation to help stakeholders like city planners and utility operators analyze how EV charging affects distribution transformers and substations. By inputting data on EV characteristics, charging infrastructure, and grid capacity, users can estimate unmanaged energy demand, identify grid vulnerabilities, and calculate optimized charging curves to defer infrastructure upgrades. The tool also explores vehicle-grid integration (VGI) potential for grid services and helps determine optimal charging locations based on grid resilience and parking habits. However, the model is limited by the accuracy of user inputs, does not provide financial cost-benefit analyses, and cannot accommodate vehicles that charge more than once per day.

• The EV Grid Simulator allows users to quantify the impact of EV charging on distribution transformers and substations to determine if costly grid upgrades can be avoided through vehicle-grid integration (VGI) measures.
• The model generates three primary types of outputs: estimates for hourly unmanaged energy demand based on fleet growth, identification of the penetration levels that would overload a transformer, and an optimized hourly energy demand curve to determine if smart charging can defer infrastructure upgrades.
• The tool can be used to identify the energy potential of EVs to provide VGI services, such as acting as grid assets for renewable energy integration or emergency backup, and to determine optimal public charging locations by analyzing multiple transformers alongside parking patterns.
• The simulator has several analytical limitations: it does not perform detailed financial or cost-benefit analyses, it assumes vehicles are fully charged upon unplugging without optimizing for individual trips, and it cannot model operational fleets where vehicles charge more than once per day, such as electric buses.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). ELECTRIC VEHICLE GRID SIMULATOR: MODEL OVERVIEW. https://files.wri.org/s3fs-public/uploads/electric-vechicle-grid-simualotr-model-overview.pdf

Chicago

World Resources Institute. ELECTRIC VEHICLE GRID SIMULATOR: MODEL OVERVIEW. n.d. https://files.wri.org/s3fs-public/uploads/electric-vechicle-grid-simualotr-model-overview.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=ELECTRIC VEHICLE GRID SIMULATOR: MODEL OVERVIEW |url=https://files.wri.org/s3fs-public/uploads/electric-vechicle-grid-simualotr-model-overview.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendelectric, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{ELECTRIC VEHICLE GRID SIMULATOR: MODEL OVERVIEW}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://files.wri.org/s3fs-public/uploads/electric-vechicle-grid-simualotr-model-overview.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }