Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment - Startups

The infrastructure that provides the crucial link between an Electric Vehicle (EV) with a depleted battery and the electrical source that recharges those batteries is the Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE). The function of EVSE is to supply electric energy to charge electric vehicles. EVSE is also known as an EV charging station, electric recharging point, or charging point. Technological advancements in EV charging and an enhanced range of distance covered by electric vehicles are some of the major factors driving the market growth.

New Motion B.V., Leviton, Allego and Delta lead the electric vehicle supply equipment - startups market and are recognized as progressive companies. They have a strong protfolio of solutions, services and ev charging companies offerings. These vendors have been making their presence in the EVSE startups market by offering highly customized and easily deployable solutions for OEMs, coupled with their robust business strategy to achieve constant growth in the EVSE - Startups market.

Chargemaster, SemaConnect, Ionity and EVGO are recognized as responsive companies in the electric vehicle supply equipment - startups market. They have an innovative portfolio in the EVSE market and a robust potential to build strong business strategies for their business growth to be at par with the progressive companies.

Wallbox OK, Alfen, POD Point, OP Connect are recognized as duynamic companies in the EVSE market. They have a strong portfolio of solutions and services and an extensive network of charging partners to increase the deployment of their charging solution across a multitude of vertical markets. Over the years, these vendors have been consistently growing in the EVSE market, and their market growth ius boosted by organic and inorganic ventures undertaken by them over the period.

Spark Horizon, Heliox, ECoG, Volta Charing, Pulse Charging are recognized as the starting blocks in the EVSE market. Most of these emerging vendors are boosting their sales capabilities across various regions to offer integrated solutions, devices and services to a wide range of clients. The emerging companies are those who may hold a stronger position in the market in the future or considered as vanguards in other products segments but are at the initial growth stage in the EVSE market.

Overview

The infrastructure that offers the decisive link between an Electric Vehicle (EV) with a depleted battery and the electrical source that recharges those batteries is the Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE). The function of EVSE is to supply electric energy to charge electric vehicles. EVSE is also popular as EV charging station, electric recharging point, or charging point. These stations are usually installed in municipal parking sites by electric utility corporations or at retail shopping centers by private companies. All of these stations are equipped with special connectors that conform to the variety of electric charging connector standards. The electric vehicles have witnessed rapid evolution with the ongoing developments in charging infrastructure and technology. Technological advancements in EV charging and enhanced range of distance covered by electric vehicles are some of the major factors driving the growth of the electric vehicle market. In addition, the growing sensitivity of various governments towards a cleaner environment has increased the demand for zero-emission vehicles. These vehicles need the installation of efficient charging infrastructure. Public and private charging stations play a significant role in this scenario. With advancements in high end charging technology, the demand for fast charging equipment is significant. The EV charging supply equipment market has attracted huge investments by OEMs. In addition, OEMs have also started developing charging infrastructure for the convenience of EV owners.

Unlike conservative vehicles that can’t be refilled in the absence of dedicated fueling facilities at selected locations, one of the affirmative facets of EVs is that these can be charged at numerous places including homes, offices, malls, parking lots, etc. Though, appropriate charging setup will need to be in place at such locations. An extensive and easily available charging network will prove to be most critical for rapid adoption of electric vehicles. The expansion of a robust charging infrastructure network is extensively considered a key requirement for a large-scale switch to e-mobility. Such infrastructure would not only deliver more charging choices for drivers but would also endorse mindfulness and range confidence for prospective electric vehicle owners.

Importance of EV Charging

• A Clean Substitute - A battery electric vehicle (BEV) has lesser moving parts than a conventional vehicle. There’s no necessity for liquid fuels or oil changes. Most of the maintenance costs related to internal combustion engine are removed.
• Cost Efficient - The total cost of owning an EV is comparatively lesser than the gas fueled cars.
• Energy Independence - The electricity that powers an EV can come from many sources, which may comprise of low-emission sources like natural gas and zero emission sources like wind, solar, hydro, and nuclear power. These allow EVs to radically decrease gaseous emissions.
• First Mover Advantages: The governments have made a variety of subsidies available for EV charging installations at all stages to develop the primary infrastructure. This enables the early adopters to considerably decrease their investment cost by leveraging the public funding.

Benefits of EV Charging

• Reduction in carbon emissions
• Employee retention for businesses
• Retailers would be able to attract more customers
• Reduction in electricity consumption leads to energy saving
• Reduction or elimination in fuel expenses
• Flexible payment options
• Business advertising opportunities

 Types of Chargers

• Rapid Chargers - Rapid chargers are the quickest way to charge an EV. They are frequently located at highways or locations near the main routes. Rapid chargers include Rapid DCchargers, Ultra-Rapid DC, Tesla’s Supercharger and Rapid AC. 
• Fast Chargers - Fast chargers are characteristically rated at either 7 kW or 22 kW. Most of the fast chargers deliver AC charging, though some networks have been installing 25 kW DC chargers with CCS or CHAdeMO connectors.
• Slow Chargers - Most slow charging units have been rated at up to 3 kW with some lamp-post chargers being rated at 6 kW. Charging times differ based on the charging unit and the EV that is being charged.

Critical features to be considered while choosing an EV charging station

• Charger speed
• If it is portable
• Wi-Fi Equipped
• Networked Charging
• Interface
• Payment Flexibility
• Installation
• Volts, amps, and kilowatts
• Location: outside vs. inside
• Plugged-in vs. hardwired EVSEs
• Cable Length
• Price
• EV Tax Benefits

How to choose a right EV Charging Station?

• Charging Speed – The charging speed has to match the user’s requirements.
• Safety – Safety of all the equipment has to be considered above rest of the things.
• Earthing System – The users will need to check if they have TT or IT earthing system on their properties and then they need to consult with the service providers about the same
• Number of Phases - Most of the properties have single phase or three phase power supply. So if the users plan to get three phase charging points, they will first need to check of how many phases are available at the property and if at all the neutral is available at the main consumer unit. This is very significant as some old properties in some countries might still use very old three phase with no neutral system.
• Voltage - Most of the power supply is either 230V single phase, or 400V three phase. So all the charging points will be suitable with the property power supply as long as correct phase type was chosen.
• Plug Type - There are only two EV charging plug standards for AC charging. That's Type 1 also referred to as J1442 or Yazaki and Type 2 also known as Mennekes. The customers need to check what type of plug is more compatible to their need.
• Charging capacity of the EV - This defines how quick the EV is capable to charge when offered with all the power needed to do this. So prior to choosing the charging point the user has to learn about his/her EV’s maximum charging capacity.

 Recent Developments

• Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, has entered into the electric vehicle (EV) space by introducing its “e-Drive” initiative, which is an innovative electric vehicle mobility model that is based on battery swapping. 
• ClipperCreek sold its 90,000th electric vehicle charging station recently along with its Auburn, CA manufacturing facility. The unit was an HCS-D40P, a recently released plug-in Dual EV Charging Station.
• EV charger company Delta Electronics is planning to invest $500 Mn in the Indian market by 2026and the company is already working with automakers such as MG Motor. 
• Panasonic Life Solutions India, plans to expand its electric vehicle charging offerings across the country.
• Google Maps has introduced a new filter to classify the Electronic Vehicles (EV) charging stations based on the types of plugs. Various companies use different charging connectors for example, Nissan uses CHAdeMO, Tesla uses its instrumentation, and also the BMW and VW use CCS plug kind for charging their cars.

Applications

 Private

Private charging stations can be installed in home garages or outdoor locations such as offices and building parking lots. Outdoor installations require outdoor-rated charging equipment. Furthermore, a charging station at a multi-family residential complex requires additional considerations and is similar to a public charging station than the one at a single-family home. A home charging station requires wiring a dedicated circuit. Hence, most of the EV owners prefer private charging as it is convenient and cheap. Over a period, various companies have started offering new innovative technologies by integrating private charging with features such as auto scheduling, energy star certification, and charging reminders to make the interface of charging system user-friendly.

Public

Public charging stations are installed on highways to charge EV rapidly. They can be installed at taxi stands, highways, parking lots of commercial properties, hotels, airports, and shopping malls. The governments of various countries are encouraging the installation of public charging stations to increase the adoption of electric vehicles. For instance, many states in the United States such as California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, and Michigan have implemented various schemes that provide rebates and incentives on installation of Level 2 charging station. The convenience of charging the vehicle while driving on a highway or during office hours is expected to boost the growth of public charging installations.

 Industry Trends

• Fast charging and portable charging services will be on a roll in the near future. A few companies have already introduced some of the products, but they will be on a rise as slow charging option are not very convenient. 
• Renewable sources of charging, such as solar, wind, and hydrogen fuel charging, are expected to play a vital role in the charging of EVs in the future. The use of renewable energy to power EV charging stations is one of the key opportunities for players in the EV charging market.
• Smart Charging is the next big thing. It facilitates load balancing and also shares the available power capacity proportionally over all active charging stations. 
• Enterprises, retailers, and service providers are investing heavily in installing EVSE to offer charging services to employees, customers, and vehicle fleets. Managing service charges and operating costs of EVSE presents a new challenge for owners.
• Charging time is a major restraint for the growth of the electric vehicle supply equipment market. Turbocharging has a power output of 800 V. With the help of a Combined Charging System (CCS) connector, it can split its 800V throughput into two 400 V plugs. Porsche has already implemented a pilot project for turbocharging in the Berlin-Adlershof technology park.
• Renewable sources of charging, such as solar, wind, and hydrogen fuel charging, are expected to play a vital role in the charging of EVs in the future. The use of renewable energy to power EV charging stations is one of the key opportunities for players in the EV charging market.
• Organizations are presently working on avoiding charging by cables and sockets and are planning to introduce a wireless way of charging EVs. The system would be placed on the ground and it can be assimilated on a large scale in the asphalt or connected with the off-street parking places. The EV that is parked above the system will be charged wirelessly with the help of induction.
• The government has been focused on battery swap as a mechanism to ease the matters of cost of ownership of EVs. Battery Swapping facilities fundamentally support exchange of discharged batteries in a vehicle with fully charged batteries from the shelf. A benefit of battery swapping is the minimized time for energy replacement in EVs as battery swap can be done within 5-15 minutes compared to up to eight hours required for charging a battery.
• Highly recommended by electric utilities, the V2G facility envisions the capability of electricity producing utilities to equal the demand on their producing volume by drawing energy from the batteries of EVs linked to the grid during the daylight hours of peak demand and returning it to the vehicles during periods of low demand during the night.
• Battery Technology - stable developments in cell chemistry, anode and cathode material, is leading to a decline in cost for each battery by around 6-8%every year.
• Solar-powered cars - Another exciting tech trend revolves around solar-powered cars. Many manufacturers are already working towards developing solar cars.
• Software – Enhancement and innovation in software will be another trend to watch out in the near future. Things like connectivity, safety, information, and in-car entertainment should see some interesting developments in 2020.