Active Managed EV Charging Can Double the Distribution Grid’s EV Hosting Capacity, New Brattle Group Report Finds

Key Terms

time of use (TOU) rates financial

Time-of-use (TOU) rates are electricity pricing plans that charge more for power used during high-demand hours and less during low-demand hours, similar to higher tolls during rush hour and discounts late at night. Investors pay attention because TOU changes when consumers and businesses use electricity, which can alter utility revenue patterns, affect the value of batteries and energy-saving technologies, and influence future infrastructure and profit forecasts.

distribution grid congestion technical

Distribution grid congestion is when the local power network that delivers electricity to neighborhoods and businesses becomes overloaded or reaches its capacity limits, like a road with too much traffic. It matters to investors because congestion can force power producers to reduce output, delay or raise the cost of connecting new generators or electric infrastructure, and trigger grid upgrades or fees—factors that affect revenue, project timelines and capital spending for energy and related companies.

distribution system hosting capacity technical

Distribution system hosting capacity is the amount of additional rooftop solar, batteries, electric vehicle chargers or other small power sources a local electricity network can accept without needing upgrades or causing reliability problems. Investors care because it sets how much new clean energy or charging infrastructure can connect quickly and cheaply; reaching the limit means utility upgrades, permitting delays or extra costs that affect project timelines, returns and grid-related investment opportunities.

wholesale market costs financial

Wholesale market costs are the prices and fees paid to buy goods, raw materials, or services in large quantities before any retail markup; think of a restaurant buying ingredients in bulk rather than a shopper buying a single item. These costs matter to investors because they directly affect a company’s profit margins, pricing power and competitiveness—rising wholesale costs can squeeze profits or force higher consumer prices, while falling costs can boost margins or enable cheaper products.

service transformer technical

A service transformer is the piece of electrical equipment that steps down the utility’s high-voltage power to the lower voltage used by a home, business or facility, typically mounted on a pole or in a ground-level pad. For investors, it matters because these devices are key to delivering reliable power and drive maintenance costs, replacement spending and safety compliance—think of them as the neighborhood’s link that keeps electricity usable and outages, bills and repair needs under control.

substation technical

A substation is a fenced facility on the electricity network where equipment changes the voltage, routes power, and protects the grid so electricity can move safely and reliably from generation to homes and businesses. Investors care because substations are critical pieces of infrastructure: they affect service reliability, grid capacity and upgrade costs, and can influence the value and operating risk of utilities, real estate near outages, and companies in the energy supply chain.

distribution system planning technical

Distribution system planning is the process of mapping and preparing the local network that delivers electricity, gas, water or other utilities from main supply lines to homes and businesses. Like planning a city’s road network to avoid traffic jams, it decides where to add capacity, upgrade equipment and place new connections to keep service reliable, meet rules and control costs — factors that directly affect a utility’s capital spending, revenue stability and investment risk.

grid-edge solutions technical

Grid-edge solutions are the hardware, software and services deployed where electricity is generated, stored or used—such as rooftop solar, batteries, electric vehicle chargers, smart meters and local control software—that let buildings and devices act more like small power plants. They matter to investors because they can lower energy costs, create new revenue streams (for example by selling stored power or demand flexibility back to the grid), and change how utilities invest in infrastructure; think of them as smart attachments that improve efficiency and can be monetized.

An analysis prepared by The Brattle Group for EnergyHub shows active managed charging can defer EV-driven infrastructure upgrades by up to 10 years.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- 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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Source: EnergyHub