Managing the EV Surge: How Duke Energy Florida is Reducing Peak Demand through Behavioral Charging

As electric vehicle (EV) ownership accelerates across the U.S., utilities face the critical challenge of managing the increased energy load. For Duke Energy Florida, which serves nearly 2 million customers in one of the country’s fastest-growing EV markets, finding a sustainable way to manage this growth was essential. EV adoption rates in Florida are projected to continue rising, with Guidehouse Insights estimating EV registrations to surpass 3.6 million by 2032. Facing the reality of this rapid increase, Duke Energy Florida took proactive steps to manage grid load while continuing to support its customers’ EV adoption journey.

In collaboration with Itron, the utility launched a four-year Behavioral Managed EV Charging Program aimed at reducing peak grid load by encouraging EV owners to charge during off-peak hours. This article outlines the program’s objectives, challenges and successes, offering insight into an effective approach for managing EV-driven load increases.

Addressing the Challenge: Increasing EV Load on the Grid

Florida’s transition to EVs is driven by both environmental goals and rising demand from consumers. According to Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE), Florida's cumulative EV sales reached 335,826 by June 2024, reflecting a 45% growth over the previous year. The surge in EV adoption presented Duke Energy Florida with a clear challenge: managing the growing load from residential EV charging on the low-voltage distribution grid while maintaining system reliability and customer satisfaction. To do this, the utility needed a program that would not only shift demand from peak to off-peak hours but also incentivize lasting behavior changes among EV owners.

In January 2022, Duke Energy Florida launched its Behavioral Managed EV Charging Program. The goal was straightforward but ambitious: incentivize customers to charge their EVs during off-peak hours, thus reducing peak demand and easing strain on the distribution grid. The program focused on three core objectives:

1. Reducing System Peak Demand: Shifting the majority of residential EV charging to off-peak hours to avoid costly grid expansions.
2. Engaging Customers: Encouraging EV owners to actively participate in managing grid load through monetary incentives.
3. Optimizing Grid Performance: Ensuring that load shifts are stable and sustained to avoid temporary fixes and provide long-term reliability.

Implementing the Behavioral Managed EV Charging Program

To implement the Behavioral Managed EV Charging Program, Duke Energy Florida needed a solution that would allow seamless integration with its existing grid infrastructure and cater to the behavioral nuances of residential EV users. The utility turned to Itron’s Grid Edge Distributed Energy Resource

Management System (DERMS)—a solution built on Itron’s fifteen years of experience designing and scaling programs for utilities and their consumers. Duke Energy Florida uses the solution to manage everything from vehicle and customer enrollment to incentive tracking, charging session monitoring and reporting.

Itron’s Grid Edge DERMS is driven by Grid Edge Intelligence, a combination of advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) providing measured and verified grid awareness, precise load disaggregation which is crucial for distinguishing EV load from general household consumption, and EV telematics data which originates directly from the vehicle. It provides Duke Energy Florida with real-time monitoring and insights into EV charging sessions, making it possible for the utility to track charging patterns and manage peak demand shifts effectively.

Itron’s Grid Edge DERMS also made it possible for Duke Energy Florida to offer its Off-Peak Charging Credit Program to all EV owners in its service area with a Level 2 charger. The program offers a $10 monthly bill credit as an incentive for EV owners who charge during specified off-peak hours. To give the participants some flexibility, the program permits on-peak charging up to twice per month without penalty.

Driving Impact: Program Success and Customer Response

Since its launch, Duke Energy Florida’s Behavioral Managed EV Charging Program has seen remarkable success in both enrollment and load-shifting outcomes. To date, over 3,000 vehicles have been enrolled, and these participants have collectively consumed more than 10 GWh of electricity through the program. Of this total charging usage, approximately 4% has taken place during peak demand hours, reflecting a 96% reduction in on-peak EV charging among participants.

Customer response to the program has been overwhelmingly positive. By the end of 2022 and 2023, the program met its enrollment targets and demand remained so high that interested customers were placed on a waitlist. This response highlights not only customer enthusiasm for the initiative but also a widespread understanding of its benefits—both for personal savings and for supporting a reliable, efficient energy system.

Lessons Learned: Keys to Successful Behavioral Managed Charging Programs

Duke Energy Florida’s Behavioral Managed EV Charging Program offers valuable lessons for utilities seeking to address the challenges posed by increased EV adoption:

• Engage Early and Often with Customers. By clearly communicating the goals, incentives and benefits, Duke Energy Florida ensured that participants understood their role in supporting grid reliability and saving on their monthly bills. Regular updates and transparent data reporting reinforced trust, which ultimately helped Duke Energy Florida achieve high levels of program retention and compliance.
• Flexibility is Key to Participation. Giving customers the option to charge on-peak a limited number of times each month was essential in maintaining engagement. This approach respects customers' needs while steering them toward behavior that supports grid stability.
• Respond to Emergency Conditions. During critical hurricane conditions, program charging restrictions were lifted so participants could prepare for travel out of forecasted areas of impact to ensure their safety.

A Blueprint for the Future of EV Charging

With the program’s initial success, Duke Energy Florida is exploring options to expand the off-peak charging incentives to accommodate future growth in EV ownership. Expanding the current program could ensure that a significant portion of this load remains off-peak, helping the utility maintain grid stability without extensive infrastructure upgrades.

Duke Energy Florida’s managed EV charging program provides a roadmap for utilities nationwide facing similar challenges. As EV adoption continues to grow, behavioral managed charging programs represent a promising approach for ensuring grid stability, reducing peak demand and engaging customers as active participants in the energy ecosystem.