Monthly Archives: March 2020

Electric vehicles could turn solar households into autonomous energy units

March 5, 2020Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, Opinion, V2GRepost

Many discussions abound on how Australia can reach renewable energy targets of 50 per cent and much more. Many experts believe achieving this goal will depend on the availability of a low cost, bulk energy storage infrastructure.

Pumped hydro has received much attention in this regard. While technically feasible, bulk storage still requires transmission and distribution infrastructure that is not only costly but will take considerable time to implement.

A far simpler and cost effective route is the bottom-up approach of turning each house into an autonomous energy unit.

The use of solar panels in homes and small industry has proven to be remarkably successful. The uptake of rooftop solar has been so good that the grid, as well as losing a portion of their market to solar, is becoming unable to use all of the exportable household solar energy generated during clear days.

Without some form of energy storage, solar panels can provide only around 30% of daily household energy, leaving the grid to supply the rest. Solar hot water systems can bring the total solar contribution to around 45% of energy requirements.

However, to reach greater household energy autonomy requires storage.

The missing element to achieving high levels of renewable energy has emerged in the form of the Electric Vehicle (EV). EVs not only provide transportation, but also have significant battery storage capacity.

It’s Time to Go Green!

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How running electric vehicles can save organisations money

March 4, 2020Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, SalesRepost

Eight years ago, Fleet News produced a supplement boldly called “2012: The Year of The Electric Car”.

While there was growing evidence at that time that the technology was about to break through into the mainstream, it turned out we were – as is sometimes the case – ahead of our time.

However, current political, environmental and technological circumstances suggest that with the dawn of the new decade, battery electric vehicles (BEVs) will now really start to gain a firm foothold in the UK fleet sector.

Part of the reason for this should be that the adoption of BEVs also has the potential to save fleets thousands of pounds per vehicle each year.

This is why it is important that organisations look beyond the P11D price or leasing cost premium that BEVs carry over petrol or diesel vehicles to look at wholelife costs, says Helen Lees, head of electric vehicles and connected services at Groupe PSA.

“We are trying to focus our customers’ minds on the total cost of ownership of EVs,” she says.

“Even if you have to pay more up front, or even if your monthly rental is a little higher, the reduced running cost through electricity is much cheaper than petrol or diesel; there is a reduced service, maintenance and repair (SMR) cost from the fact there are fewer mechanical working parts so there is less to replace on every service, and that can change the perception of pricing in the customers’ minds.”

It’s Time to Go Green!

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Let’s spark the electric car revolution now — there’s no time to stall

March 2, 2020Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, Opinion, Sales, TeslaRepost

For those of you thinking that electric cars didn’t exist before Elon Musk and Tesla, think again.

Those stepping out into the manure-strewn streets of Manhattan in 1897 could have hailed a battery fuelled, as opposed to horse drawn, taxi. In 1900, more than 1,000 electric cars were made in the US, 28 per cent of total American car production that year.

A few years later, however, Henry Ford produced the petrol-powered Model T and the electric starter motor replaced the hand crank. From that point on, the electric car was seemingly doomed: not enough power, not enough range and, as petrol stations proliferated, not enough charging points.

To be fair, electric vehicles still managed to flourish in niche areas. The humble milk float had a maximum speed of around 15mph, could travel roughly 25 miles (following a seven-hour charge) and blocked the streets of Britain for decades. Floats were cheap to run and could easily be charged at the milk depot after the day’s deliveries (a model that could be used in the 21st century if we end up with huge fleets of self-driving cars). Still, floats could never compete with a Ford or, for that matter, a Ferrari.

Tesla, however, can. And, increasingly, so can other manufacturers of electric cars, one reason why the Government is now planning to ban the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2035. Range is less of an issue than it once was. The cars — unlike milk floats — are quick. Fuel-wise, they’re incredibly efficient: they don’t rely on the controlled explosions taking place in an internal combustion engine (which creates too much by the way of heat and too little by the way of miles). And, over time, the maintenance bills will be a lot lower: no gearboxes to go wrong, no spark plugs to clean, no engine oil to be changed.

It’s Time to Go Green!

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EDF acquires Pod Point securing its role in the UK EV market

March 2, 2020Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, POD PointRepost

EDF has confirmed its long-rumored acquisition of electric vehicle (EV) charging company Pod Point, in a move that sees it cement its position in the UK EV space.

The energy supplier has purchased the charging company together with Legal and General, which is taking a c.23% stake in EDF’s newly-formed joint venture. This follows the finance giant purchasing a share in Pod Point last March.

EDF says that the acquisition will bring benefits including reduced costs to customers, through the combination of EDF’s energy solutions and Pod Point’s 62,000 chargers in the UK currently.

The acquisition follows its purchase of battery storage and EV charging infrastructure firm Pivot Power last November as it seeks to grow in the EV space, both in the UK and Europe.

Simone Rossi, UK CEO of EDF said EVs will be “crucial” to reducing carbon emissions and fighting climate change.

“With the addition of charge points, we can help our customers to reduce their carbon footprints and benefit from lower fuel costs by going electric. The additional electricity demand from EVs will require urgent investment in low carbon generation from renewables and nuclear.”

Erik Fairbairn, Pod Point CEO & founder said that this was an “incredibly exciting next chapter” for the company.

“By joining up with EDF we can take things to the next level and accelerate our national roll out of charging points and make it even easier for drivers across the UK to go electric. I’m immensely proud of what the Pod Point team has already achieved but think it is only a fraction of what we will now be able to do with EDF.”

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Electric Vehicle Consumer Code launched for domestic installers and suppliers

March 2, 2020Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and CommentRepost

A consumer code for installers and suppliers of electric vehicle (EV) charge points has been launched by Renewable Energy Assurance Ltd (REAL).

REAL also operates a number of other codes and certifications, including the Renewable Energy Consumer Code (RECC). A 50% discount on membership of the Electric Vehicle Consumer Code (EVCC) will be offered for the first year for installers who are already RECC members, with Joju Solar and Caplor Energy the first two EVCC members.

The EVCC applies to suppliers and installers of domestic EV charge points whether acting on their own account or as a sub-contractor.

It spans pre-sale activities, contracts, installation and completing the work, after-sale activities and complaints handling and the dispute resolution process.

It has been designed to dovetail with the Institute of Engineering and Technology’s Code of Practice for Electric Vehicle Charging Equipment Installation (the IET Code), as well as the current Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme.

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Coronavirus outbreak impacts production of electric vehicles

March 2, 2020Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

The coronavirus outbreak in China is expected to have an impact on the auto industry in the United States.

That’s according to a new analysis from the Lansing-based Anderson Economic Group.

“It’s a very bad situation,” says Patrick Anderson, Principal and CEO of the group. “I think it’s going to cascade out into the United States in terms of certain parts and certain models fairly quickly.”

Millions of people in China have been quarantined because of the virus outbreak. Many factories closed, though some – like Tesla’s assembly plant in Shanghai – have started to reopen.

Anderson says the economic impacts for carmakers will mostly be felt within China, but he says companies may have to substitute parts in North America to continue production of certain vehicles.

He says the hardest hit part of the industry will be electric vehicles, because China makes many of the batteries that go into the vehicles, and those batteries can’t be quickly sourced from elsewhere.

“I think the effect of this is partially going to identify for people how fragile the supply chain is for battery-electric vehicles,” Anderson says.

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