Kevin Buresh

Investigating the impact of Electric Vehicles in South Africa

Masters in Engineering Student

The purpose of this thesis is to assess the impact of Electric Vehicles (EVs) in South Africa, and investigating how PV technology can be used to mitigate it. The impact of EVs will not be limited to consumers, but will effect the electrical grid and business. These three case studies are evaluated by the change in C02 footprint, electrical demand and financial savings. Each case study makes use of simulations constructed in python.

Discharging and charging of EV fleets are simulated to provide minutely energy and demand data. Using historical recorded energy data provides a basis to see the change EVs will have. PV simulations are run using real weather data, panel and inverter specifications to determine the feasibility in reducing EV impact. Assessing the combination of the mentioned data above provides different scenarios that may make the transition into EVs easier.