Don’t all power up at once

EV owners are encouraged not to all power up their cars when they get home from work at around 6pm.

Otherwise it could lead to a big jump in electricity demand and could see people paying more for it.

That’s the message from Chargemaster, which says if all passenger cars were electric and everyone plugged in when they got home it could see a 35% jump in peak power demand.

“And to get back the investment required in reinforcing the electricity grid, one scenario is that everyone would pay more for electricity.”

Slow charging is an option short-term, but will create challenges as the number of EVs grows. Even with a timer, larger car batteries simply mean you run out of hours in the evening to fill up your car, the company says.

Chargemaster is bringing intelligent, high capacity AC charging here now. Its range of 22kW AC chargers mean you can fill your car in a shorter time (dependent on the on-board car charger), enabling fast AC charging well outside peak hours.

“And by charging outside of these peak times, the need for future electricity network investments is reduced, meaning lower electricity costs for all.”

In a recent whitepaper by Drive Electric, “Peak Pressure: what challenges do electric vehicles pose to New Zealand’s electricity grid?”, rapid growth in large capacity EV chargers creates a potential challenge to network companies.

To ensure their products are future proof, Chargemaster’s top of the line chargers have communications capabilities which can enable their chargers to be remotely controlled by network companies, just like hot water systems.

The chargers can operate as a slow or fast charger to reduce peak electricity costs in the home, or on a commercial site.

Visit chargemaster.co.nz

for more.