Dr Phillip Paevere

Summary

I lead industry-focussed research and consulting on electric vehicles, energy networks and the built environment. At CSIRO, I've spent decades building research capability from scratch, developing concepts and early stage technologies right through to real-world implementation and impact. I led the development of CSIRO's Vehicle-to-Grid partnership with Essential Energy (2025 ENA Industry Innovation Award winner), conceived and led the Electric Driveway project that developed the first network-deployed V2G systems in Australia, and co-designed Australia's pioneering EV field trial with the Victorian Government.  I led the CSIRO work to advise the NSW Govt on their Zero-Emissions Bus Strategy and have worked hand-in-hand with the energy industry including projects with AusNet, Ergon Energy, Synergy, and Tritium on EV grid integration and charging data analytics. I have actively contributed to Standards Australia's national EV charging and operations standards and served as advisor to the IEA's Hybrid and Electric Vehicles Technology Collaboration Programme. Earlier in my career I co-authored the Australian Standards for timber-framed housing which have been used in the design and construction of eight million Australian homes. I also conceived and led groundbreaking work that developed indoor environment quality testing methodologies and design guidelines that underpin standard practices across the Australian green building industry. Feel free to get in touch for conversations on EV-grid integration, energy network innovation, and sustainable built environments.  

Please also refer to my LinkedIn 

Experience

Consultant — Energy, Mobility & Sustainability
Freelance (Self-employed) | 2026 – Present

CSIRO

• Principal Research Scientist, Networks & Transportation | 2022–2026

• Team Leader, Energy Modelling | 2014–2022 — Led research on the simulation of cities, buildings, energy systems and mobility.

• Research Director, Urban Systems | 2011–2014 — Directed CSIRO's urban research program, managing a team of 50 researchers across a broad portfolio of cities-related research.

• Principal Research Scientist, Energy & Electric Vehicles | 2009–2011 — Senior researcher and portfolio leader in electric vehicles, energy systems and energy efficiency. Developed Australia's first network-deployed V2G and V2H systems, and built a custom fleet of five bespoke EVs for CSIRO energy research.

• Senior Research Scientist, Climate Adaptation | 2004–2009 — Research lead for the Buildings, Materials & Infrastructure group, overseeing projects in sustainable buildings, house construction, natural hazards and indoor environment quality.

• Experimental Scientist / Research Scientist, Manufacturing & Infrastructure Technology | 1995–2004 — Building and construction technologies, smart buildings, and natural hazards research.

Standards Australia

• EM-001, Electric Vehicle Operations | 2011–2026 — Committee member and contributor to AS 5732 (Electric Vehicle Operations) and SA TS 5396/7 (EV chargers for residential and commercial applications).

• TM-002, Residential Timber-Framed Construction | 2002–2012 — Committee member and co-author of AS 1684 (2010), the standard underpinning the design and construction of eight million Australian homes.

• TM-001, Timber Structures | 2002–2011 — Committee member and co-author of AS 1720 (2010) and AS/NZS 4063 (2010), the primary standards governing timber construction design in Australia.

International Energy Agency (IEA)

• Advisor, Hybrid and Electric Vehicle Technology Collaboration Programme | 2012–2014 — Independent advisor to the Executive Committee on emerging research and industry developments in EV-grid integration.

Education

• Ph.D., Engineering — University of Melbourne
  Australian Postgraduate Award with Stipend
  Melbourne Abroad Travelling Scholarship
  Best Paper Award, ASME 23rd International Conference on Computers and Information in Engineering 

• Bachelor's Degree, Engineering — University of Melbourne
  First Class Honours
  Argus Scholarship — top graduate overall
  David Tresize Robertson Scholar Award — highest ranked final year student
  Institution of Engineers Australia — academic prize, final year subjects
  A.T. Danks Exhibition — academic prize, third year subjects 

• Visiting PhD Scholar, Faculty of Engineering — University of California, Berkeley

• Visiting PhD Scholar, Danish Centre for Applied Mathematics and Mechanics — DTU, Technical University of Denmark

Publications Summary

My publications record spans more than three decades of research across energy systems, transport, and built environments, and includes publications in diverse inter-connected domains within engineering, statistics, social science and economics. This breadth reflects my experience in connecting technical research to real-world impact, from early-stage concepts through to industry standards and  technology prototypes. Together, this body of work provides the foundation for my current research and consulting practice in electric vehicle-grid integration, energy networks, and sustainable built environments.

[Publications List - Google Scholar]

Selected Projects

E-Mobility & Grid Integration

I lead industry-focused research and consulting portfolios evaluating electric vehicle charging behaviors, uptake of EV technology and distribution network impacts. My cross-disciplinary approach integrates data analytics, choice modeling, and spatial simulation to understand grid integration and inform national policy. 

• Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) Testing & Demonstration Facility: Established a pioneering 5-year partnership between CSIRO and Essential Energy to demonstrate network-deployed V2G value streams. Led the conceptual framework, contracting strategy, and delivery phases, helping to secure the Energy Networks Australia (ENA) Industry Innovation Award for delivering the nation's first market-ready CCS2 V2G solution. [News Article] [Project Report]

• The CSIRO Electric Driveway Project: Conceived and directed a comprehensive portfolio of EV integration projects funded by government and utilities. Developed Australia's earliest grid-connected V2G and V2H physical testbeds, established custom research fleets of vehicles, and pioneered spatial-temporal modeling to map EV charging and discharging at electrical feeder scale. [V2G Trial Report] [V2H Spatial Modelling Paper] [EV Uptake Model] [V2G Prototypes PPT] [EV Barriers and Policies] [Social Research Report] [Policy and Technology Options] 

• Victorian Electric Vehicle Trial: Led CSIRO enagement as the primary research partner on the trial. Designed the trial data framework and data collection strategy and delivered final trial output including a summary of all charging events from the trial. [EV Trial Summary] [Full Paper]

• EV Diffusion, Market Uptake & Grid Impact Simulation: Formulated advanced predictive frameworks combining multi-criteria analysis, discrete choice modeling, and traffic flow patterns. Developed large-scale simulations to forecast spatial EV distribution, charging network load profiles, and policy lever efficacy across Victoria and wider Australia. [V2H Spatial Modelling Paper] [EV Uptake Diffusion Modelling] [EV Smart Grid Spatial Modelling] [Policy Impacts on EV Diffusion] [Travel & Charging Patterns] 

Sustainable Housing & Residential Energy Systems

My research in the residential built environment centers on demand management, building envelope energy dynamics, and the techno-economic optimization of net-zero and off-grid housing performance under shifting climate regimes. 

• Residential Design Tools & Solar Self-Consumption Optimization: Developed specialized analytical software engines and algorithms to simulate household solar PV self-consumption profiles. Extended the analytical capacity of national frameworks like NatHERS and engineered multi-variant optimization models for residential storage integration. [Off-Grid Design Tool] [Future Climates] [Solar Household Self Consumption] [Load Profiles] [Household Energy Prediction Model] [Residential Building Energy Strategy] [Small Building Energy Efficiency] 

• Thermal Comfort & Demand Responsive Air Conditioning: Investigated localized residential load profiles, community-level energy end-use behaviors, and human thermal comfort limits. Led field assessments evaluating peak demand management through utility-controlled, demand-responsive climate systems during extreme heat events. [Community End-Use Energy Model] [Townsville Peak Demand Assessment] [Thermal Comfort Under Demand Response AC] [DR Thermal Comfort Phase 1] [ AusZEH Demonstration House Report ] [Building Envelope Microclimate Models] [AC Spatial Diffusion & Tariff Pricing] 

Indoor Environment Quality, Structural Engineering & National Standards

Earlier in my career, I established foundational testing methodologies for building materials, indoor pollutant dynamics, and advanced structural mechanics. This research directly underpins standard practices across both the Australian green building and timber construction sectors. 

• Indoor Environment Quality (IEQ) & Occupant Productivity: Conceived and executed groundbreaking field validation studies linking indoor environment quality directly to workplace health, cognitive performance, and commercial productivity. Developed comprehensive testing frameworks deployed in landmark sustainable structures including the City of Melbourne’s Council House 2 (CH2). [IEQ and Occupant Productivity in the CH2 Building] [BEDP Environment Design Guide] [Occupant Health & Productivity Report] [Smart Buildings for Healthy Workplaces] [IEQ Impact on Productivity Paper] [VOCs in Indoor Environments] [IAQ in Australia Review] [Dryer Vent Emissions Study] [Liveability Review] 

• Light-Frame Timber Construction & Structural System Reliability: Conducted full-scale destructive testing, system identification, hazard loading characterisations and risk/reliability analysis of buildings, towers and offshore structures. [Whole Building Testing and Modeling] [Single Storey Woodframe Destructive Testing] [Wood Wall Seismic Capacity Rating] [L-Shaped Woodframe Seismic Reliability] [Hysteretic Pinching & Reliability Paper] [Timber Buildings Parameter Identification] [Seismic Reliability of Timber Buildings] [System Identification of Hysteretic Structures] [Inelastic MDOF System Optimization] [MDOF Hysteretic Model for Offshore Towers] [Topographic Multipliers Full Scale Measurements] [Measurements of Topographic Multipliers] [Steel Connections Limit States Design] [Earthquake Code ACADS Review] [Lattice Towers Along-Wind Response] 

• Engineered Nailplated Truss Systems & Standard Development: Directed extensive industry-funded experimental testing and structural analysis investigating load-sharing mechanics and connection failures in engineered timber component assemblies. Long-term roles on Standards Australia committees, co-authored the building codes used to design more than eight million Australian homes. [Nailplate Project Final Report] [Engineered Truss Trouble Pape ] [Plated Truss Performance Review] [Load Sharing & Redistribution Paper] [Light Frame Design Models] [Wood Buildings 3D Model Part I] [Wood Buildings 3D Model Part II] [Nailplate Backout Investigation] [Systematic Performance Requirements Management]