Plugging into the grid

If you drive a petrol-powered vehicle, you know where the nearest petrol station is and the cost per litre. In industry jargon, petrol is distributed through a centralised fuelling system. You know the brands, the price and the place.

Refuelling an EV requires a total change of mindset. You plug in and then go make yourself a coffee plantation. Rejuicing the battery at about 25km/hour takes hours.
 
Jordan Ramer, CEO of US-based company EV Connect, says: “With electric vehicles we’re in the beginning of decentralisation of fuelling.” And it is a big thing; a real quantum shift in thinking about driving and recharging your EV.

“People have to have that EV experience, and they adapt their thinking quickly to decentralised fuelling. With an EV they realise they can recharge at home, at work, at shopping malls, at park & ride stations, at hotels...”

The network of EV recharge stations is expanding rapidly throughout California, Oregon and Washington State. Even in the state where crude oil is king, Texans are turning on and plugging in. EV Connect installs and maintains EV charging stations, and business has been very good lately.

“We’re growing at triple digits annually,” says Mr Ramer, who adds that most of his business in California is doing installations for municipalities, Silicon Valley high-tech companies, universities and retail businesses.

The California Public Utilities Commission recently deregulated the sale of electricity to electric vehicles, allowing EV drivers to pay by the hour to ‘recharge’ instead of paying by the kilowatt. Deregulation in this instance equals simplification.

Simplicity has prompted many companies to offer no-cost recharging to employees who drive an EV. The cheaper charging cost and convenience of decentralised recharging may prove a back-pocket incentive to boost EV adoption.

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