Grace Carroll, EV, Virtual Party and Training Lead for Engage Consulting, recently spoke on a panel during the second day of the EV Infrastructure & Energy Summit 2025. Then she presented an award at the EVIEs Awards that same evening.
Demand Side Response and the new Energy Trilemma
Grace sat on a panel with Greg Payne, Modelling and Analysis Lead at Cenex, Dr Josey Wardle, Innovation Lead for ZEV Infrastructure at Innovate UK and Akshat Gupta, UK manager at The Mobility House Energy. Moderated by Toby Thornton, e-mobility Director at Baringa, the panel discussion covered Demand Side Response, where the conversation explored how Demand Side Response (DSR) in the form of unidirectional smart charging that shifts demand (V1G) and bidirectional Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) that acts as energy storage can help manage grid demand. Panellists emphasised that successful EV DSR at scale can only occur if chargepoint operators and energy suppliers cater to the needs of different types of EV drivers and fleet owners. Grace outlined what she has termed the ‘new energy trilemma’ of convenience, cost, and control – the three factors different customers must balance to different extents demanding on their needs, priorities and habits
These are the three factors‘ customers weigh up when deciding whether to participate in flexibility services, and one of the new energy profiles energy retailers must consider for service design. She further highlighted the benefits of cross-sector collaboration and understanding as the EV and retail energy sector become even more intertwined. This included how Engage Consulting recently partnered with Energy UK to develop, and deliver, its new ‘Understanding the GB Retail Sector’ training course
EV Infrastructure Through Regional Partnership
Later in the evening, Grace presented the Best Local Authority EV Strategy award to Supercharging the Midlands, a Midlands Connect project.
The project won for “fundamentally reimage[ing] how EV infrastructure can be delivered through regional partnership, creating a model that addresses both commercial realities and social equity considerations”. Supercharging the Midlands brings together several local authorities rather than having each one work independently. When building charging infrastructure, regional planning better reflects how people travel across areas rather than administrative boundaries.
Making EV Charging Infrastructure Accessible
One of the key challenges facing the sector is ensuring that charging infrastructure reaches all communities. Deployment strategies that only target immediately profitable fragments provision and underserve the full range of drivers requiring access. Grace emphasised this during the panel with her closing remarks, where she highlighted the opportunity for EVs to protect energy vulnerable customers with home energy storage solutions, where affordability for dedicated batteries, or home modification solutions for non-owners, can be limited.
At Engage, we support clients in a range of areas to unlock opportunities in the EV and Energy Sector. This includes: how to deploy EV infrastructure effectively, design tariffs which engage customers in DSR behaviour and how to enter the market as a Virtual Party to maximise flexibility trading opportunities. We have been providing specialist advisory services in the energy sector since 2000.
Grace’s participation in these industry events reflects our commitment to contributing to the discussions shaping the future of EV infrastructure in the UK. These forums provide valuable opportunities to exchange insights and advance best practices across the energy sector.
Grace commented “It was a pleasure discussing this with other industry leaders and to see the amazing achievements of the sector during the awards. The Government has stated that EV Demand Side Response is crucial in achieving Clean Power 2030, and this can only be achieved by the transport and energy sectors platforming shared opportunities and open discussion on challenges in events such as this.”
If you would like to discuss any of the topics covered by Grace during the panel, reach out to g[email protected].
Grace was Head of Home, Workplace and Destination Charging at the government’s Office for Zero Emissions between 2021- 2024, where she worked closely with Local Authorities to unlock barriers to EV charging, working with the Local Government Association and various individual councils on Permitted Development Rights, cross-pavement solutions and social housing charging access.
You can read more about the panel discussion which quotes Grace’s commentary in EV Infrastructure News coverage: Fleets are the big vehicle-to-grid (V2G) opportunity
