Is Distributed Generation the Future of EV Charging?
By 2025, experts project that electric vehicles will account for as much as 30% of all new vehicle sales in the United States. To support this growing market, electric vehicle (EV) charging stations are already being built across the country. The vast majority of these charging stations depend on electricity from the grid to operate, but Energy Choice believes that there is a better option.
The Energy Choice DER Electric Vehicle Charging Stations are fully containerized power generation units that utilize a natural gas engine and a battery to provide immediate vehicle charging. The unit is sized to charge multiple vehicles at the same time. There are many benefits to using the Energy Choice charging unit instead of depending on the grid for power including:
- Lower cost of electricity on a $/kWh basis
- Reliable power even if there is a grid outage
- Efficiency and emissions are better than or comparable to the grid
Technical Overview:
Each Energy Choice charging station is sized to fully power two electric vehicle charging stations. It consists of a battery and a natural gas reciprocating engine. The battery starts charging the vehicle immediately after it is plugged in. The engine then switches on and takes overcharging within a few minutes.
A 7’x7’x15’ steel container houses the engine, generator, battery, inverter, and all necessary electrical and control equipment. The container protects the equipment and reduces noise to as low as 55 dB(A). The station is factory assembled, pre-wired, pre-piped, and tested to ensure full functionality. The utility-grade unit is monitored remotely and controlled via the PLC system.
Savings Overview:
When charging stations take electricity from the grid, the resulting electric bills can be a huge burden. A significant portion of each electric bill is from demand charges, which are based on the largest instantaneous electric demand. Customers can benefit greatly from an EC300B unit by eliminating this utility demand charge.
The DER charging stations compare very favorably with MA grid power:
DER installation cost is often comparable with a charging station grid interconnection.
DER produces power below $0.10/kWh (including fuel cost, 24×7 monitoring and long-term maintenance). This DER production cost is a fraction of MA all-in grid rates.
Energy Choice Commitment:
Energy Choice’s equipment is high quality and utility grade. Additionally, Energy Choice provides much more than just the equipment. It is our priority to ensure that every power generation solution is set up for success for the lifetime of the project. Included in Energy Choice’s scope of supply is all engineering and equipment needed to interconnect the unit to the gas utility, electric utility, and the facility’s electric infrastructure. Installation, startup, testing, interconnection permitting, and emissions permitting are provided as well. Once the units are operating, Energy Choice will continue to support the project by offering a maintenance contract that includes scheduled maintenance, remote monitoring, and a fast response in the event that unplanned maintenance is required. By providing full project support throughout the life of the equipment, Energy Choice ensures that your facility will always have a reliable and high-quality power generation solution.
Learn more about Energy Choice’s EV Charging Stations here.
