Optimal siting and sizing of charging stations for autonomous electric vehicle fleet with local renewable energy generation

With the large-scale development of AEV's in the future, the additional electric demand will create strong constraints on the existing distribution network, particularly in terms of network capacity and nominal currents. Upgrading the public electrical infrastructure is surely a sustainable long-term option but requires important time delay (in years) and huge investment costs. While previous works have been done on optimal siting of charging stations and AEV fleet operation, this paper discusses the utilization of local renewable energy sources to fulfill additional electricity demand by AEVs while taking into account the uncertainty of renewable energy production. Thus, it proposes a framework to optimize the location and sizing of charging stations based on solar irradiation spatial distribution data, charge requests, and minimization of the present value of the investment and operational costs.