I just read this interesting article that claims that consumer demand for electric vehicles (EVs) will be the most important factor in determining the speed at which the development of the smart grid will occur. I was surprised at this and also very excited as changing consumer behavior will likely motivate utility companies to move faster as opposed to political motivations. Obviously, utility companies have a history of being slow to innovate; however as more consumers demand fuel-efficient EVs, the current power grid will not be able to sustain the added electricity being requested by the EVs. Therefore, utility companies will be forced into making the smart grid a reality.
There article had a couple other interesting technology tidbits. Most interesting was the idea of having a vehicle smart enough to charge itself only during off-peak hours. This is important as it helps smooth the electricity demand out and also make it cheaper to charge your vehicle. The second cool idea was utility companies having the ability to pull stored power from vehicles of willing consumers to help offset high-demand periods. Sounds similar to the demand response efforts of EnerNOC!
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