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There is some news about EV charging, according to the effects of a new survey from analytics firm J. D. Power: Drivers are happier with their public charging reports than they were last year. In fact, this is the second quarter in a row in which EV drivers have been more satisfied. satisfied.
When it comes to public fast-charging stations, which can recharge EV batteries in between 15 minutes and an hour, drivers are much happier with their availability and ease of payment. It has also improved the public’s satisfaction with fast charging times.
But one factor stands out: how much it costs to use a public fast charger. “This is the least satisfying facet of fast charging,” says Brent Gruber, executive director of JD Power’s electric vehicle business. “It’s significant in terms of impact. “
In fact, there is knowledge of drivers’ doubts when it comes to price. Public fast charging has gotten a little more expensive this year, according to new research from Stable, an electric vehicle charging software company. Public fast charging stations went from an average of forty-five cents per kilowatt hour in late March to 46 cents per kilowatt hour in late June. At that price, they would charge around $35 to qualify a Tesla Model 3 Performance and just over $40 for a Ford Mustang Mach-E.
Why are drivers frustrated with pricing?One of the reasons may also simply be that drivers do not perceive how electricity prices work. Another option is that while gas stations are the only place where cars can get fuel, public charging stations are only one option for EV drivers, and they’re used to it. pay much less to recharge. In comparison, a public fast charge might seem too expensive.
It turns out that EV charging fees are complicated. For one, like fuel costs, they vary by state and even by city. Stable’s data shows that some states, such as Georgia, Tennessee, Wyoming, and New Hampshire, have noticed their public rates. (It’s possibly no coincidence that the J. D. Power survey finds that drivers in New England, where New Hampshire is located, are the least satisfied with public speed-bill rates. )The increases, Estable points out, are in put options whose costs were well below average; now they stay with the Joneses.
Another complexity that can frustrate the driving forces of electric vehicles: the price of electric power itself is confusing and changing. A great deal of variability in the prices of electric power (and in the price a driver will pay to “refuel” their car at a charging station) depends on the way the electric power is produced, i. e. , through natural gas, solar, hydropower. or coal. The costs of this infrastructure, adding not only the structure but also the expansion and maintenance, are taken into account in the final value at the pump.
But let’s wait longer: different utility companies also use other public incentive systems and set other costs for their products. And there are about 3,000 utilities in the United States.
All of this means that “there’s a lot of variability in terms of pricing and how they’re passed on to customers,” says Ben Shapiro, who manages the carbon-free transportation program at the Rocky Mountain Institute.
Another strange feature of electric power pricing considerations is tariffs. This is a payment that is paid through the EV charging sites servers and is based on your highest usage, in intervals of 15 minutes to an hour, a payment period. These require utility assistance fees to cover the various costs of building and maintaining an electric power grid. But they are frustrating in the context of EV charging, because some chargers are used very rarely, but when used they require a lot of electrical energy in a short time. This incurs an application fee.
These application fees can run into “hundreds of thousands per year for a site,” says Rachel Moses, who leads sales, marketing, and business progression at Electrify America.
Meanwhile, some utilities charge “peak” rates, which means more cash when many other people are employing electric power. This means that charging sites tend to charge more to supply electricity between four p. m. and nine o’clock at night, when everyone gets home, turns on the TV, air conditioning or heating and maybe plugs in the car. All of this leads to unpredictable billing prices.
Electrify America says its pricing is “station-specific,” meaning it will charge consumers more money for billing at stations that are more expensive to operate. But other EV charging corporations are adopting a broader technique and averaging the operating costs of their entire network for costs over a wider area.
In addition, businesses can rate dynamic pricing for EV charging, which means they can upgrade. Fortunately, there is a limit to this approach. The rules on investment in national public charging infrastructure mean that chargers built with public budget replenish their values when you are charging your car, even if the price that the company will pay for its electricity is replaced.
All of this means that it is difficult, at this point, to expect how much they will pay to qualify on a public rapid screener. It’s no wonder drivers are frustrated.
But do they deserve drivers to feel frustrated? Not knowing exactly how much to pay to charge your car at a public fast-charging station can be annoying, but it also doesn’t fully reflect most people’s satisfaction with electric vehicles.
The real advantage of owning an electric vehicle is that the fuel can only be found at a gas station, cars can be recharged in many other places. At home, at the grocery store, at work: Not all of these places may have fast chargers, but many have “Level 2” plugs and slower chargers where drivers can get some power.
Incumbents (and some motorists) are interested in public charging stations. But about 90% of today’s EV drivers have garages, driveways, or other places where they can qualify their cars overnight. One day this will no longer be the case and public charging stations will have to fill the gap for other people living in apartments or parking on the street.
But for now: Maybe don’t get too hung up on public chargers, which commonly fill the gaps when EV drivers take long car trips.
“We have this style of gas station in mind,” says Kellen Schefter, senior director of electric transportation at the Edison Electric Institute, an agreement that represents electric companies owned by U. S. investors. “If our purpose is to reflect the EV style of fueling station, we’ve missed out on one of the real advantages of EVs. “
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