Mega-Jolt: The Costs & Logistics Of Plugging In EVs Are About To Become Supercharged

John Murkowski, via RealClear Wire

,

During her summer road trip, U.S. Energy Sec. Jennifer Granholm unintentionally gave Americans a glimpse of the future by promoting the wonders and benefits of electric cars.

Her article does not highlight the potential of EVs.

Public relations misadventure

In Georgia, a member of her staff driving a gasoline vehicle blocked off a charger before she arrived. This led to a heated argument and an EV owner in the area calling the police. This was a good example of the difficulties drivers may face as governments encourage the public to adopt plug-in cars.

EVs may be hailed as technological wonders, but they are a boobytrapped mess of trade-offs and inconveniences.

Many people are familiar with range anxiety, lithium-ion battery explosions, and the

environmental destruction

Caused by

global mining

Battery minerals are used to make batteries.

The federal government, along with state officials, are investing billions in building a national infrastructure of charging station to power EVs.

In order to maintain and install chargers, retailers and business owners will have to pay for them. Some of these charges may be written off in the future as an economic loss.

Government estimates suggest that California will need at least 20 chargers to be installed for each gas station currently in operation to create a reliable and seamless network.

Public subsidies of a massive scale will be an important part of this initiative, because the private sector is unwilling to gamble on a future that may not come true.

Subsidies from the government are synonymous with complying

Recordkeeping and reporting

Ensure that chargers are available 97% of time and bear the financial risk associated with vandalism, mechanical failures, daily fluctuations of electricity prices, and unpredictability of cash flow.

A society that is 'net-zero' favors those who have over those without. Renters and families with low incomes are less likely to have private chargers. Electricity purchased at public chargers is also more expensive.

Five to 10 times more

As charging privately in your garage at home. To avoid penalizing

The little guy

,

California's EV mandates requires at least 50% of the benefits to go to public chargers, but federal EV mandates only require 40%.

These 'equity communities'

Where relatively few people drive EVs currently.

It will take a lot of American's to make the rapid transition away from the reliable legacy energy infrastructure of more than 100 years old and towards emerging technologies within a few short decades. This includes relearning driving patterns and adopting charging habits that are currently the exclusive prerogatives of trend-setters and early adopters.

'

We must ensure that the infrastructure is built to capacity, and there are enough vehicles. This will prevent drivers from being stranded.

John Eichberger is the executive director of Transportation Energy Institute. When you bring up the challenges for a strong believer, or an advocate, then you are just being negative. You're trying to impede their progress.

This summer's energy secretary's blunder encapsulates all the challenges, both social and financial, that are glossed over to gain public support for a carbon-neutral world that would not be possible without government funding. It's an old pattern, selling complex policies as simple solutions. The cultural gatekeepers are the ones who do it.

Misrepresent EVs to be 'net-zero'

technology,

Lowballing the total land area

Need to know

Build out solar

Wind farms are a great way to generate electricity.

It is difficult, if not impossible

Critics should question the apocalyptic predictions and apocalyptic assumptions of climate change advocates.

To curb greenhouse gas emissions,

California

,

New Jersey

,

New York

,

Massachusetts

,

Maryland

. and other states have banned the sale of gasoline cars beginning in 2035. Nearly 60 countries have adopted similar EV mandates. The Biden Administration is spending $7.5 Billion on

500,000 EV charging ports

As part of the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, EV sales will be increased to 50% of new vehicle purchases in 2030.

The sales of electric vehicles are increasing, but not at the pace set by policy experts.

Under 8% of all new car sales

In the third quarter of 2016, it rose to almost

10% off in September

California leads the nation in the EV transition. The state has more than 31 million registered vehicles and EVs account for approximately

New car sales account for 25% of the total.

Second quarter

.

California's forecasts and investments show the EV shift in a more complete light. The state has spent at least $14 billion on EV infrastructure and clean transportation.

Most of the money comes from taxpayers

The state's electric utilities and the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program, as well the state's portion of the

Settlement of $14.7 billion

Volkswagen over the

Dieselgate scandal: cheating on emissions

.

'

Why would anyone want to say 'hold on for a moment' when there is so much money floating around, particularly government subsidies?

Robert Charette is the President of ITABHI Corporation in Spotsylvania. He writes about

EV charging challenges

'The EV Transition Party is just beginning, and nobody wants to see the punchbowl taken away any time soon.

EV experts say that at some point the kinks in EVs' design will be worked out and they will become as convenient to use as smartphones. EVs are currently facing a classic "chicken-and-egg" problem. Although the current demand for EVs does not justify a rapid expansion of the nation's infrastructure for charging, many people will still hesitate to buy EVs because they fear being stranded.

California has invested massively in infrastructure, totaling now nearly

Public chargers: 94,000

The state has failed to achieve its goals

Public Chargers: 250,000

By 2025, the number of new cars powered by gasoline could be 10 times higher than it is today.

A Massive Transition

It is the responsibility of government officials to build a charging infrastructure that is as reliable as utility services.

The Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank, said that 'rarely has a government - at least in the United States - banned products or behavior so widely adopted or practiced'.

Recent EV Report

The report highlights that EVs differ from other emerging technologies, which people purchase willingly. For example, more than a hundred years ago, governments did not have to ban horses in order to encourage the adoption of newly invented gasoline powered cars.

There is no consensus about the number of public chargers needed. The transition will be so vast and involve such uncharted territory that it's impossible to predict.

A

California Energy Commission Assessment

California will require more than 2.4 millions public chargers by 2035 to support 15.5 million electric vehicles, trucks and buses. This translates to 2,11 million chargers, including 83,000 fast chargers to support 15,2 million electric vehicles. There are also 256,000 depot chargers as well as 8,500 public chargers to accommodate 377,000 trucks and busses.

Only half of the vehicles registered in the state would be served by the 2.4 million chargers. The second half of the transition from 15.5 to 31 million EVs will require many more chargers.

These chargers must be placed at the curbside, in parking lots, decks and garages, as well as in grocery stores, restaurants and convenience stores. They will also need to be located within office buildings, strip centers, shopping malls, movie theaters and other places so drivers can plug in whenever they want.

According to Jeff Lenard's estimate, the National Association of Convenience Stores Vice President of Strategic Industry Initiatives, California has approximately 11,000 gas stations and convenience stores that sell gasoline. This translates to roughly 110,000 gas nozzles. By 2035, California will need to install 20 EV chargers for each gas nozzle to make the switch from fossil fuels.

The new EV infrastructure requires significant changes to driving habits. Not all chargers work the same. Although so-called fast charging can charge a battery up to 80% in less than an hour, the majority of new public chargers are cheaper Level 2 technology. This provides between 5 and 60 miles per hour and is not practical for road trips.

Some of these chargers are'shared-private', which means that they will only be available in workplaces and housing developments, and only to tenants, employees, and visitors. For example, today,

More than half of the population are able to access this service

California has 94,000 charging stations that are "shared private." Many Americans will have to coordinate their activities to coincide with public charging of plug-in vehicles, including shopping and eating out. This is more complicated than just stopping at the gas station to fill up.

The state does not keep track of the hundreds of thousands private chargers, which are usually housed in garages and run at 120 volts. They provide a range of between 3 and 5 miles for each hour of overnight charging.

High-Risk Low-Margin Businesses

Chargers will continue to lose money for the foreseeable, until enough EVs are on the roads to justify their investment.

Costs of building a charging station with four or five ports can vary from several hundred thousands of dollars to over $1 million depending on labor costs, trenching and grid upgrades.

Electricity prices fluctuate throughout the day. Fast chargers, therefore, are subject to complex peak demand price fluctuations, and unpredictability in 'demand fees' that are charged by the local power company for the maximum amount of electricity required. Charging companies,

Utility regulators

Power companies across the country are experimenting with different solutions to help companies that charge for electricity predict their costs ahead of time.

Customers can enjoy variable pricing

They can't

Manage your risk

You can also find out more about the following:

Set prices according to the market

Future strategies may include solar power generation and battery storage on-site to help shift the load and balance demand throughout the day.

Electric utilities and charging companies do not always work together.

Some private charging companies refuse to compete with each other

Regulation of utilities

Profits are guaranteed. In an effort to encourage companies to invest in California, the California Public Utilities Commission encouraged charging companies to do so last year.

The state utilities are barred

Participating

A

Five-year statewide $1 billion

Rebate program for EV charging

Wyoming officials hired consultants to evaluate the financial viability for chargers. The consultants estimated that the seven remote charging stations would be used infrequently, resulting in losses of $285,000 - $372,000 over the next five years. EVAdoption CEO Loren McDonald is an EV analyst.

Write an Analysis

Even with federal subsidies covering 80% of costs, it is unlikely that remote highway sites will break even in at least five to ten years.

McDonald and Charette said that this calculation is not only limited to states with sparse populations, but it also applies to "charging deserts" in large states with urban areas.

'

It's not just a local issue, but rather a national problem that hasn't been fully recognized.

"Once independent EV charging station are outside of major travel corridors, urban/suburban area and the major highways, they will not be economically viable for a long time."

California officials have said that charging stations in convenience stores and other retailers must rely on other amenities for profit, essentially operating as loss leaders.

Report 2022

California Energy Commission: "Revenues from electricity sales alone are often not enough to make chargers profitable today, especially for stations that have lower utilization."

California Energy Commission explains other possible risks such as the decommissioning of state-subsidized chargers that lose money.

'I

If the chargers are not used to their full potential, they may not be operated for the entire term of the contract.

'

The report

These risks are greater in areas where there is less population density and demand for travel.

In response to questions from RealClearInvestigations, the California Energy Commission said by email that not every charger has to be profitable in order to have a profitable network.

The agency stated that 'profitability of charging may not be the main goal of an installation'. "For example, installing charging at a workplace or retail establishment or apartment or condominium building could be part of a package of attractive benefits that will drive customers to restaurants and shopping centers or local residents to park."

Amongst the largest charging companies, Electrify America doesn't report its financial information publicly, but

EVgo

You can also find out more about the following:

ChargePoint

According to the financial disclosures filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission, these companies have consistently reported negative cashflows and operating losses since their foundings in 2010 and 2007.

This partly confirms my suspicion as to why station operators were historically slow to fix non-working stations.

Blog Chris Kaiser

, who is the EV Charging Practice Leader for Sona Energy Solutions. Sona Energy Solutions is a consulting and contractor firm. If they can't make money from station operations, they're better off with a broken station.

Unreliable, unavailable

The reliability of chargers will continue to be a problem as they are installed in rural areas, areas with low income, and other remote places.

Tesla's proprietary super chargers, which have operated as a walled-garden for Tesla owners, are the notable exception. They consistently produce high satisfaction scores. Tesla's super chargers are proprietary.

What number?

21 789 ports are being installed in 1,968 locations across the country.

Open up

You can also find out more about the following:

Non-Tesla ow