Posted by Max Dunn
Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:03:55 GMT | no comments
Some people envision that a network of public charging stations would allow EVs to make long trips. However, I am not so sure.
Even though the Leaf claims a 100 mile range, this is only possible with non-freeway driving. For the normal American driving habits, the EPA gives a range of 73 miles which is in-line with my Leaf experience. Also, if I drive hard on the freeway, then my range can be as low as 60 miles.
This means that when driving a far distance, you could drive for about an hour, then have to stop and DC fast charge for 30 minutes. Since the DC fast charge fills up the battery to only an 80% level, the next leg would be even shorter. Driving the 400 miles LA to from San Francisco normally takes about 6 and a half hours in a gas car, but an EV would require at least 6 recharges and take about 10 hours. Doable, but not very efficient.
Posted in Electric Vehicles
Posted by Max Dunn
Tue, 31 Jan 2012 16:12:09 GMT | no comments
David Herron asked a question today on LinkedIn about the cost to charge an EV at a public station. For those of you not on LinkedIn, here is the answer.
Currently, most public charging stations are free, but you sometimes need to pay for parking. For instance, when I am in SF, I usually park my Leaf at Pier 27 and pay $15 ($10 at night and weekends) to park. A 2-hour charge costs them about 75 cents in electricity, so it is cheap for them. But, they have 2 spaces reserved for EVs and these are often empty and so overall, they are probably losing money.
A company called 350Green is installing charging stations at Walgreens. Walgreens pays for just part of the cost and 350Green will make revenue by selling charging subscriptions for about $70 a month. Coulomb Technologies is also planning on charging too, at about the same rate.
Why does it cost $70 a month? Well it is expensive to install a charging station. EVs take about $35/month in electricity so a $70 subscription leaves $35 for equipment and profit. A networked charging station costs about $2,000 but installation can be expensive depending on how far the power lines need to run. So figuring another $2,000 for installation means a total cost per charger of $4,000. Most people that buy a monthly subscription probably can’t charge at home (maybe they live in an apartment and park on the street) so they will probably want to plug-in while they are at work. This means there can only be one subscription per charger, which will take about 5-years just to pay for the charger and installation before the company makes any money at all.
Posted in Electric Vehicles
Posted by Max Dunn
Sat, 01 Oct 2011 16:54:13 GMT | 1 comment
Figuring out how much electricity your electric vehicle (EV) will use is pretty easy. From the wall, 1kWh of electricity will power the Leaf about 3.5 miles (and a similar amount for other EVs). So for a normal 1,000 mile a month usage, it would take about 300kWh of electricity each month (rounding up).
This should add about $35/month for electricity at the average price of $0.11 per kWh. However, for most users it will push them up into higher tiers and be at least twice that. For us, we went from a $70/mo electric bill to $170/mo!
But wait, it gets more complicated. EV owners are required to contact PG&E and go on a special E-9 time-of-use rate plan.
The great thing about this plan is that off-peak, you can charge your EV for $0.05 to $0.06! The bad thing about this plan is that the bottom tier only goes up by 30% and then all times have higher costs. For instance, after 130% of base usage is reached, off-peak charging goes to $0.16 and then at 200% goes to $0.20!
We just switched over a few months ago and are still analyzing our bill, but it looks like it was reduced from $170 to about $120. We think with some reduction (turn off those lights kids!) and shifting our dishwasher to after midnight we can get it down to about $100, which means the EV will cost about $30 per month. Just where it should be!
Posted in Electric Vehicles
Posted by Max Dunn
Sat, 05 Feb 2011 04:17:08 GMT | no comments
It would seem obvious that lithium is the most expensive part of a li-ion battery. However, it turns out that lithium contributes only 10% to 14% of the battery cost, while the separator is responsible for 40% to 60%! Here is the breakdown of how each material in a li-ion battery contributes to its overall cost:
- Anode: Made from carbon, 5% to 15%
- Cathode: A metal oxide, 5% to 11%
- Electrolyte: A lithium salt in an organic solvent, 10% to 14%
- Separator: Made from polyolefin, 40% to 60%
It is very surprising that the plastic polyolefin is the most expensive part of a li-ion battery!
(From the Pike Research blog post Lithium-Ion Battery Materials: Japan Dominates in the EV Era
Posted in Electric Vehicles
Posted by Max Dunn
Tue, 14 Dec 2010 20:02:36 GMT | 1 comment
In previous analysis, I relied on the Better Place estimates that initially there should be 4 public charging stations per electric vehicle (EV) and that this number could drop to 2 to 1 as the EV population grew.
However, new numbers from Pike Research suggest that we only need 1.15 to 1.3 charging stations per EV.
While these numbers are all guesses, it is important for anyone trying to determine how much revenue they could expect from installing EV charging stations since at 4:1 there will be a lot more unused charging time at each station than at 1.15:1.
(Source: Pike Research – Charge Spotting: Determining the Right Mix for Public EV Access)
Posted in Electric Vehicles
Posted by Max Dunn
Wed, 13 Oct 2010 00:23:28 GMT | 1 comment
Electric vehicles (EVs) will soon be available in large numbers and will need to be charged daily. This is no problem for half of the US population that can charge at home, but the other half that park on the street or in apartment complexes will need public charging stations. Is it possible to make money from EV public charging stations?
There are several ways to do this. One is to add a percentage surcharge over the price of electricity used (although this maybe prohibited by some PUCs), another is to charge a fixed fee every time a charging station is used and a third is to charge a monthly fee.
Read more...
Posted in Electric Vehicles
Posted by Max Dunn
Tue, 12 Oct 2010 15:47:42 GMT | 1 comment
There has been some concern that electric vehicles (EVs) will not hold their value as much as gas powered cars because of the high cost to replace the battery pack. However, a new report by CAP (a leading Europe-based vehicle valuation firm) forecasts that the Leaf will retain 40% of its value after 3 years and 30,000 miles. Their reasoning:
The Leaf should have a shallower depreciation curve than conventional cars; the electric motor has fewer moving parts than an internal combustion engine so when mechanical issues and wear and tear begin to affect other cars, the Leaf should still be running well.
For my Leaf, I ordered the SL option package and the fast charger but got a discount from North Bay Nissan. With tax and everything, my out-the-door cost will be about $37,000. However, with the $7,500 federal rebate and the $5,000 state rebate, my net cost will be $24,500. So if it retains 40% of its original price, the real depreciation after 3 years would be about $10,000. Not bad!
(Source: AutoBlog Green)
Posted in Electric Vehicles
Posted by Max Dunn
Thu, 30 Sep 2010 14:32:28 GMT | 1 comment
A new report from Rice University confirms what I have been saying for a long time – electric vehicles (EVs) are the best way to reduce America’s oil dependency.
The report found that if only 30% of vehicles are electrified by 2050, oil usage would be reduced by 2.5 million barrels a day and carbon emissions cut by 7% – even if the electric generation mix remains the same as today. They also found that a carbon tax of $30 a ton would actually increase US dependence on foreign natural gas!
So even if our government is not able to get its act together and institute a comprehensive renewable energy policy, the widespread adoption of EVs will do the job anyways.
(Source: AllCarsElectric.com)
Posted in Electric Vehicles, Global Warming, Peak Oil
Posted by Max Dunn
Thu, 02 Sep 2010 02:34:18 GMT | no comments
Pike Research released a new report “Plug-in Electric Vehicles” which estimates that by 2015, sales of electric vehicles (EVs) will total over 3 million worldwide with over 800,000 sold in the U.S. While I think these numbers are conservative, they are higher than Pike predicted just a year ago.
Posted in Electric Vehicles
Posted by Max Dunn
Tue, 24 Aug 2010 17:08:57 GMT | no comments
Five teams from four continents started the ZERO Race on August 16th in an attempt to drive their electric vehicles (EVs) around the world in 80 days using only renewable energy – which means they will produce no emissions at all!
It is not a race about speed, but the start to creating a greener planet and a better place to live for future generations by making small, efficient vehicles popular. The team with the smartest, most efficient, most reliable, most usable and most popular concept will be the winner.
Posted in Electric Vehicles