Chair of Federal Energy Regulatory Commission talks electric cars and the grid at the Detroit Economic Club

Saulius Mikalonis By Saulius Mikalonis
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on October 19, 2010 at 3:02 PM, updated October 20, 2010 at 9:48 AM

"Who writes the history? Um, well... The guy with the biggest club." Mel Gibson ("Who Killed the Electric Car?")

On October 19, I attended a Detroit Economic Club meeting at which the Chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Jon Wellingham.  Mr. Wellingham conducted a wide-ranging discussion about new electric vehicles coming on the market, their advantages, certain misconceptions about such vehicles, and how such vehicles could transform our electrical grid.  The event was extremely well attended and engendered some thought-provoking questions from the audience.

Mr. Wellingham provided a brief history of electric vehicles in the United States, beginning with the birth of the automobile through the recent past.  After almost disappearing from the market in the 1930s, electric vehicles experienced a resurgence in the wake of the Oil Embargo in the late 1970s.  More recently, policymakers have determined that the development of production model electric vehicles are a necessity if we are to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, reduce the environmental effects of petroleum use as a transportation fuel, as well as keep up with our competitors in the marketplace who are investing billions to develop and market these vehicles.  While in the past these vehicles were more like "glorified golf carts", the new electric vehicles are robust to the point that some of them can match up with more conventional gasoline vehicles in terms of performance and comfort.

Mr. Wellingham identified what he termed the "Seven Myths of Electric Vehicles", dispelling each of them as unfounded in practice.  These include the following bits of "common knowledge": (1) electric vehicles don't have the necessary range needed for modern driving habits; (2) significant and perhaps financially prohibitive infrastructure improvements are necessary to make wide-scale use of electric vehicles a reality; (3) these vehicles take too long to charge; (4) the current grid cannot support significant use of electric vehicles to charge batteries; (5) electric vehicles don't reduce pollution, but merely shift the pollution from the tailpipe to the smokestack; (6) batteries themselves pose an environmental threat when they are no longer suitable for vehicle use; and (7) whatever savings one would have by using electric vehicles are not offset by the increased cost of electric vehicles.  Each of these "myths" were dispelled in turn: (1) the average American drives 40 miles per day, which is well below the fully charged range of electric vehicles; (2) most charging will occur at home where infrastructure is already in place, but even so, there are at least seven private companies competing to provide easily available charging systems in the marketplace; (3) most charging will occur overnight, which is doable even with only a 110 volt outlet, although much quicker recharging occurs with a 220 or 240 volt outlet, which is easily installed in the home and some developing charging systems can fully charge a car in 15 minutes; (4) most charging would occur in off-peak hours, but even if electric vehicles become 40 percent of the market overnight, the existing generation capability would be enough to supply the necessary power; (5) emissions are more efficiently reduced at the smokestack than the tailpipe and with new regulations in place and newer powerplants and the use of different fuels (like natural gas) that are more efficient at reducing pollution, reduction in pollution will become even more evident; (6) batteries are 99 percent recycled because their raw materials are valuable, but even when batteries can no longer be used to power vehicles, they have sufficient capacity for other uses by utilities looking to store power and the like; and (7) cars run more efficiently as electric vehicles than gasoline-powered vehicles (the equivalent of $0.75 a gallon of gas).

With respect to the last point, Mr. Wellingham introduced developments in the interaction between electric vehicles and the electric grid that he described as the most exciting development in energy that he has experienced in 35 years of being involved with energy issues.  According to Mr. Wellingham, electric vehicles while charging may provide a valuable service to electric utilities, can also provide a source of income to owners of electric vehicles.  Currently, utilities need to start up and shut down generators to keep the grid in balance.  These generators are inefficient and have a several minute lag time.  Batteries, on the other hand, can provide the necessary start up and shut down in seconds, and with tens of thousands of them available to provide this service, the grid becomes more efficient and less likely to experience blackouts.  In return, utilities pay for these services, at an estimated $7 to $10 per day for each electric car on the grid that can provide such a service (special equipment is needed).  This makes electric vehicles even more economical.

Finally, Mr. Wellingham stated that changes in the grid should remain flexible and open to innovation.  For those reasons, he suggested that the market should determine which technologies would best succeed in the market.  He also indicated that while the public is justifiably concerned about the deregulatory conditions that brought about Enron, new laws and regulations in place should prevent a similar future manipulation of the energy market.  Ultimately, it would appear that the future of electric transportation and the generation and delivery of electricity are inextricably linked.