Minea prepares for the introduction of electric buses in Costa Rica

The Ministry of Environment and Energy (Minea) announced this Thursday that they are in the preparation stage to integrate electronic buses in the country.

This project arises as “the result of national policies that promote the transition towards a greater participation of renewable energies in the national energy matrix, it is expected that during the next few years there will be greater electrification in transport and therefore an increase in electricity. electricity demand ”.

In addition, it is part of a joint work with that of the Power and Energy Research Laboratory (EPERLab) of the UCR School of Electrical Engineering.

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The purpose of this stage is to provide “tools to bus companies to define the optimal number of charging points required on campus according to the number of units, and to electricity companies to study the impact on electrical distribution circuits.”

As part of this stage, the University of Costa Rica published a study “aimed at analyzing the impact on electrical networks when electric buses enter; the document addresses key aspects related to the estimation of the number of chargers to be installed in the bus company campuses, the evaluation of the impact of electric buses on the electricity distribution network and the management of recharging electric buses on the campus ”

The Deputy Minister of Energy, Rolando Castro, stated that “the use of electric vehicles in the country incorporates new challenges, among them its potential impact on electricity distribution networks, for this reason, from Minae we have sought to support decision-making based on studies technicians prepared by specialists, which also include the generation of knowledge and technical tools necessary for electric and bus companies to have the inputs that allow them to take on the challenge of electric transport ”.

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As part of this stage, the Minae has also developed virtual workshops with the aim of providing training on the use of the tools and deepening the details of the study.

Costa Rica has as part of its Decarbonization Plan the goal that by 2035 30% of the country’s buses will be electric and 85% will be zero emissions by 2050.