Economic benefits through system integration of electric waste collection vehicles: Case study of grid-beneficial charging and discharging strategies

Abstract Electrification of a waste collection fleet as part of vehicle-to-grid can be used in a grid- beneficial way, which in turn can increase the economy of these vehicles. In this study the system and grid integration of fully battery-electric waste collection vehicles (eWCV) is examined. The possibility to shave power peaks of a lightweight packaging plant and to provide balancing power by eWCV are analyzed. For this, performance and market models are developed using an ex-post analysis, considering also levies and charges. Building on this, various scenarios for the grid-beneficial integration of eWCV are designed. These are assessed based on the resulting energy consumption of the eWCV, charging costs and feasibility for real-life implementation. It is shown that using electricity generated by thermal waste management plants for charging can reduce the operation costs of eWCV. Also, peak shaving is viable from an economic point of view. Network charges and well as the complexity of the system prevent an economical provision of balancing power by eWCV.