EV CHARGING FACILITY INSTALLATION ISSUES (2)

Editor’s Note: These series are selected from manual Electric Vehicle Community Market Launch Manual: A Guide to Prepare Your Community for Electric Vehicles which was prepared by the Electric Transportation Coalition (ETC) and the Electric Vehicle Association of the Americas (EVAA) in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).

Helping Consumers with EV Charger Installation

Many parties are expected to be involved in the siting, design, and installation of EV charging facilities, including the local electric utility, automobile manufacturers and local dealers, charger manufacturers, local electrical contractors, code enforcement officials, and individual consumers. To date, the industry has not agreed on a formal process for installing EV charging equipment that meets the time expectations and desires of a potential EV purchaser. The industry’s ultimate goal is to establish a smooth, coordinated process that will ensure installation of the charging equipment at the consumer’s residence within 72 hours.

In the early years, utility and government fleets are expected to be the primary customers for EVs. Most parties believe that fleet EV purchasers will install charging facilities for EVs as they are delivered, using the electric utility as a resource for any needed technical information.

The sale of EVs to consumers living ins ingle and multi-family dwellings may present substantially different challenges. A CALSTART study, Optimum Retail Process for Establishing Residential EV Charging, concluded the following:

  • Consumers want options as to who is responsible for installing the electrical circuit/charger in their homes.
  • Consumers are extremely tolerant and patient regarding the turn-around time for EV charging installation. A reasonable turn-around time was one week after the purchase of an EV.
  • Consumers require education on all aspects of EV ownership and operation. Expanding upon the first conclusion, researchers found four basic installation scenarios that consumers would consider:
  • The EV dealer is responsible for the installation.
  • The consumer initiates the process by contacting the electric utility.
  • The consumer initiates the process and coordinates activities with an independent electrical contractor.
  • The consumer completes the work.

To date, electric utilities have taken different approaches to installing EV charging facilities in residences. LADWP, and SMUD intend to install, and in some cases retain ownership of, the charging circuit. Virginia Power and BECO intend to distribute off-board chargers to customers. And Arizona Public Service intends to simply provide information to the consumer on the installation process.

Automobile dealers have indicated that they want to control the process of the EV sale and installation of home charging. In this case, the process might flow as follows. The auto dealer and electric utility could set the stage by reapproving qualified electricians to install the charging equipment and by gaining a commitment from the building department to issue building permits and conduct inspections quickly. As a backup, local stakeholders may also agree to allow a temporary hookup, probably using level 1 charging, if the consumer requires a speedy installation and the 72-hour turn-around goal can’t be met. Other preliminary steps would be to create lists of utility and building department contacts and of qualified electricians and to develop a standard form that auto dealers could use to initiate the installation process with the customer. The form would cover administrative details and provide information on topics the consumer might need to consider, such as the possibility of obtaining a special electricity rate for EV charging and the need for a local building official to inspect the consumer’s home to determine whether an electrical panel upgrade or fan will be required. Dealers would review the form with EV purchasers and provide the lists of contacts. From this point, the consumer would handle installation details, using the dealer or electric utility as a resource.

The critical element in the successful sale of an EV, the installation of the EV charging station, and the operation of the EV is consumer education. It would be very unfortunate if a dealer sold an EV to a consumer who later found that the cost and complexity to install an EV charging station was not practical.

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March 11, 2008 · Filed Under Electric Car Conversion Blog

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