Learnings

Outcomes

The project has achieved its aims to:
1. Understand how increased EV uptake and tourist patterns will impact seasonal peak demand on the network.
2. Identify the scale, location and duration of any increased charging demand broadly for the North of Scotland followed by an in-depth study of specific locations.
3. Enhance stakeholder engagement for helping local community groups, local authorities and other organisations to understand impacts of heightened EV tourism will have on local demand.
4. Identify suitable local flexible solutions to assist in demand management during seasonal peaks but also benefiting residents all year round. These solutions may extend beyond charge points only to options such as valet charging.
5. Inform investment strategies for network development based on expected impacts of EV uptake and tourist patterns.

All the reports detailing the research, the findings, and the proposed solutions are published on the ENA website at https://smarter.energynetworks.org/projects/nia_ssen_0038/. The reports relating to the Scottish phases and the initial Isle of Wight evaluation phase were presented at ENIC in 2021, videos and animations were also used to inform and engage stakeholders.

The final report is available on our website at https://www.ssen.co.uk/globalassets/E-Tourism/2208-E-Tourism-alternative-solutions.pdf. This report details the patterns we can expect to see, which areas will experience the impact of seasonal demand and what can be done about it by local authorities, tourist sites, DNOs, and other organisations.

Local flexible solutions are also identified and ranked in order of cost and simplicity so they may be used as a toolkit of people looking to connect any number of EV charge points in rural locations.

Lessons Learnt

Understanding Covid-19 impacts on Tourism

Very little is understood about the long-term impacts of the Covid-19 Pandemic on tourism. Particularly the increase in ‘staycations’ and potential
higher volumes of EV Tourism. The methodology which was developed as part of stage 1 is being exploited further to analyse the Isle
of Wight. Consideration has been made for uncertainty around Covid-19 long term impacts.

Whole System Planning

Whole system planning combines electricity, gas, transport, tourism, a local and national government, regulated networks and
community stakeholders to provide a better understanding of infrastructure requirements. Alongside this, Local Energy Plans are being developed by the local authorities. The data and methodology around seasonality obtained in the first part associated with EV Tourism
are being incorporated into the Regional Energy System Optimisation Planning (RESOP) tool which is part of the NIA_SSEN_0043
Whole System Growth Scenario Modelling Phase 2 project.

This will allow DNOs to assess specific geographical challenges and risks to the demand capacity and identify specific solutions for
flexibility around EVs. For example, Dundee is close to St Andrews and when large golfing events take place in St Andrews, large numbers of visitors choose accommodation in Dundee and travel to the event. This has the potential to increase the number of EVs in
the surrounding area which will produce a temporary increase in electrical demand for a few days only. Studying this influx of visitors in Dundee and the resultant energy demands will help to plan for temporary infrastructure or travel hubs, for instance.