Tuesday 23 May 2011. The Green Piece
It’s well documented that car manufacturers are jockeying for position in an attempt to establish themselves as the leaders in the electric car race, with the likes of Nissan, Renault, Ford, General Motors, Toyota and Honda among the early adopters of the technology. However, equally competitive is the race to produce the charging equipment for this new generation of vehicles.
The market is largely in its infancy with most of the companies selling the products having been around for less than five years. However, a new report by Pike Research (see article) has ranked them based on their early success.
How does electric car charging technology work?
The concept behind an electric vehicle charging station is straightforward – it supplies the electric energy used to charge a vehicle. While most electric cars can be charged from a domestic wall socket, there is a need for publicly accessible charging points that support faster charging at higher voltages.
A relatively inexpensive charging system will provide around 3.3kilowatts of power and take several hours to recharge a vehicle – for example, the Nissan LEAF takes approximately eight hours to recharge from one of these power points. With most users charging each day, they will rarely need to fully recharge so this is fast enough for most users. However, if you need to refuel mid-trip it could be frustrating.
That’s why higher power charging stations have been introduced with fast charging. However, high peak power requirements can place stress on the local grid and could even lead to blackouts. That’s why some companies have been looking into energy storage systems that would bridge the gap between charging station demand and the power grid.
So who are the leading players?
According to the Pike Pulse research, two electric vehicle supply equipment vendors are ahead of the pack in terms of their strategy and execution: Coulomb Technologies and ECOtality.
Coulomb Technologies, based in Campbell, California, offers ChargePoint Networked Charging Stations and also has its own network of public charging stations with a consumer subscription plan and utility grid management technology which helps utility companies smooth the electrical demand on the grid. It first introduced its charging stations in downtown San Jose in 2009, with drivers able to access the charging points via a prepaid plan.
Now there are 1,800 planned 240V stations being built through ChargePoint America, a $37million project that is backed by a $15million Department of Energy grant. Overall, Coulomb is expected to provide 4,600 charging stations to homes and public locations by October, 2011.
Meanwhile, ECOtality is the name behind eTec and the EV Project, which was awarded $99.8million from the American Recovery Act to team with Nissan North America to deploy up to 4,700 electric cars and 11,210 charging systems across Arizona, Oregon, California, Tennessee and Washington.
ECOtality actually offers a number of technology solutions including: the Blink Network, which offers residential and commercial charging stations for electric vehicles; Fast Charging, a line of advanced fast charging systems based on advanced algorithms that allow fast charging with less heat generation and longer battery life; and EV Micro-Climates, a turn-key programme that enhances select areas for the adoption of electric transportation.
Why are these companies leading the way?
According to Pike senior analyst John Gartner, Coulomb Technologies achieved the highest overall rating because is has established a number of successful technology partnerships, as well as forming an extensive product portfolio and a global sales network. It is the highest rated company both in terms of its strategy and its execution.
Meanwhile, ECOtality is deemed the runner up primarily because of its role in the EV Project as well as its extensive partnerships and strong product portfolio.
Who else is involved?
While Coulomb and ECOtality may be leading the pack, this is by no means a two-horse race. There are several companies that announced products in 2010 and will begin shipping later this year – including Siemens, GE and Eaton – which are all developing good product strategies and could well become key players in the market.
Also singled out for praise were Elektromotive and AeroVironment, which ranked third and fourth respectively. Elektromotive has a stronghold in the European market with sales in nearly a dozen countries; while AeroVironment has a strong technical background and has recently announced a partnership with BMW (see article).
Our verdict – The technology is ready
It’s no secret that one of the biggest stumbling blocks to the success of electric vehicles is the lack of charging infrastructure that is in place. However, what Coulomb, ECOtality, Elektromotive, AeroVironment and the rest prove clearly, is that the technology is there for charging points to emerge across any country; and with car manufacturers finally bringing electric cars to market, we are on the brink of a real breakthrough.
However, the stumbling block now is the lack of investment by major governments in the technology. It seems that many of the world’s leaders are adopting a ‘wait and see’ approach and hoping that the technology will be proven as a ‘sure thing’ rather than gambling with a substantial investment now. However, it’s clear the technology is ready and the time for commitment is now.
Faye Sunderland.
