Active Managed EV Charging Can Double the Distribution Grid's EV Hosting Capacity, New Brattle Group Report Finds
An analysis prepared by The Brattle Group for EnergyHub shows active managed charging can defer EV-driven infrastructure upgrades by up to 10 years.
EnergyHub, a leading provider of grid-edge flexibility solutions, and The Brattle Group today announced the results of a study that used real-world electric vehicle (EV) data from an EnergyHub program in Washington State to quantify the grid reliability and cost savings benefits of active managed charging.
As EV adoption continues, utilities are tasked with managing increased strain on an aging grid. The Brattle Group's analysis of EnergyHub's active managed charging solution shows that advanced optimization of EV charging can help utilities meet this challenge effectively by reducing local grid stress and minimizing wholesale market costs, while continuing to ensure customer charging needs are met.
The report, Demonstrating the Full Value of Managed EV Charging, compared two active management strategies tested in a real-world trial against unmanaged charging and passive time of use (TOU) rates, finding that active managed charging:
- Reduces EV charging peaks by up to 50%: Active management smooths EV load at the service transformer and feeder levels, reducing distribution grid congestion.
- Significantly increases distribution system hosting capacity: Managed charging can allow the distribution network to support ~2x more EVs before requiring upgrades.
- Defers primary and secondary distribution system upgrades by up to 10 years: Utilities can substantially delay costly investments while maintaining service quality.
- Saves up to $400 per EV annually: Active strategies deliver substantial system cost savings in most geographies and could be even higher in more constrained locations.
- Delivers 95% of charging during off-peak periods: Active managed charging can handle complex time-of-use rate schedules for customers, reducing charging bills.
- Ensures customer charging needs are met: 100% of EVs that remained plugged in with sufficient time to charge reached their desired target state of charge, while individual customers overrode charging commands in an average of 2.3 sessions per month under active management strategies.
The study also found that just one or two EVs can trigger distribution service transformer overloads under unmanaged charging or passive TOU rates, while active management can allow the same transformers to support up to five EVs.
"As utilities prepare for accelerating EV adoption, understanding the real-world performance of active managed charging is critical for planners to be able to utilize these solutions in distribution system planning," said Akhilesh Ramakrishnan, Managing Energy Associate at The Brattle Group and co-author of this study. "This report provides a rigorous, data-driven evaluation of how active managed charging can improve hosting capacity and reduce grid infrastructure costs. By using actual vehicle data to model distribution system impacts, this study moves the industry beyond assumptions to actionable insights that support proactive planning and investment decisions."
"This report confirms that active managed EV charging isn't just a theoretical solution — it delivers measurable grid value today," said Freddie Hall, Data Scientist at EnergyHub. "By actively shaping load at the distribution level, utilities can defer costly upgrades, improve reliability, and design programs that work for both the grid and drivers."
EnergyHub's active managed charging solution enables utilities to optimize EV load for multiple objectives while prioritizing driver experience. Its Distribution Load Optimization technology delivers multi-level optimization across distribution grid infrastructure — from the substation to the service transformer — helping utilities solve for distribution limits, wholesale costs, and customer rates.
As more EVs take to the road, The Brattle Group's findings highlight the urgency for regulators and utilities to move from a policy of reactive infrastructure upgrades to proactive planning that incorporates grid-edge solutions. Active managed charging provides a cost-effective, scalable pathway to maintain affordability and reliability while advancing the clean energy transition.
Read the full report here.
About EnergyHub
EnergyHub is a leading provider of clean energy software and services that unlock the full potential of distributed energy resources (DERs) for utilities, markets, and customers. With the EnergyHub Edge DERMS platform, utilities can enroll and manage DERs like thermostats, EVs, and batteries to create virtual power plants (VPPs) that deliver grid flexibility and reliability. EnergyHub helps 170+ utilities manage over 2.5M DERs and more than 3.4 GW of flexible capacity with customer-centric programs and cross-DER optimization. To learn more, visit energyhub.com. Follow EnergyHub on LinkedIn and X.
EnergyHub is a subsidiary of Alarm.com (NASDAQ:ALRM), the leading platform for the intelligently connected property.
About The Brattle Group
The Brattle Group answers complex economic, finance, and regulatory questions for corporations, law firms, and governments around the world. We are distinguished by the clarity of our insights and the credibility of our experts, which include leading international academics and industry specialists. Brattle has 500 talented professionals across three continents.
Our Electricity Practice serves utilities, grid operators, power producers, customers, regulators, developers, investors, law firms, and policymakers. For more than three decades, our experts have been recognized as trusted advisors and thought leaders in the planning, regulation, litigation, and operations of electricity grids and markets. Our clients collectively serve more than 90% of North American electricity customers, and our experts have testified before courts and regulatory agencies worldwide. For more information, please visit www.brattle.com.
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