Thanks to all for participating in our Project Get Ready webinar. If you were unable to attend, feel free to view the playback of the full program.

Note: This webinar ran about thirty minutes over our typical hour-long format. Following Jim Francfort’s presentation, we had an informal and open discussion about the INL data and other topics.  If you happened to sign off prior to this discussion, you can hear the playback, starting at the 60-minute mark.

Please click on the links below to download pdfs of each presentation.

• National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Kevin Walkowicz
• Pyxidus, Sean Osborne
• Idaho National Laboratory: Jim Francfort

Please download a pdf of the minutes, here.

Download the report here.

Thanks to all for another informative webinar.  I have copied the minutes below. If you were unable to attend, feel free to view the playback of the full program. You may also download each of the following presentations:

• Green Parking Council: Paul Wessel, Executive Director
• Canopy Airport Parking: Skeeter Buck, Sustainability Manager
• Car Charging Group: Michael Farkas, CEO

Project Get Ready Webinar Minutes

December 13, 2011

RMI/PGR Update

• International EV Casebook
  • Publishing book of 25+ city EV readiness strategies
  • Partnering with Clinton Climate Initiative, the Climate Group, Department of Energy, International Energy Agency, UC Davis, and the Clean Energy Ministerial’s Electric Vehicles Initiative.
  • Seeking participation from PGR cities
  • Casebook provides opportunity to highlight efforts among other pioneering cities
  • Profiles completed for Portland, Los Angeles, New York City, Barcelona, and Stockholm

Paul Wessel, Executive Director, Green Parking Council Email: paul@greenparkingcouncil.org

• National 501(c)3 organization
• Unites parking, green building, clean technology, smart grid, urban planning and sustainable mobility
• Why provide EV charging at parking facilities?
  • Garages are an opportunity to help uptake of electric vehicles
  • Offer all-day charging
  • Urban garages and lots often serve residential and daytime parkers
  • Extend range to workers
  • As an industry, we’re acknowledging that we’re part of the automobile ecosystem
  • Service we can offer in a highly competitive industry
  • Public value in offering charging
    • Public relations value for being involved
    • Helps improve image of parking lots and garages
    • Now we have lots with green walls, roofs, car-share programs, and now charging
  • Best garage locations for electric vehicle charging stations
    • Need to think of Installation, maintenance costs and performance
    • Parking garages offer protected alternative, keeping stations safe from inclement weather, such as snow and ice
  • Turnover in spaces with vehicle charging equipment
    • We should be so lucky to have this problem
    • Most EV spots are typically unoccupied
    • But there is one approach to use valet services to rotate vehicles
    • Placing charging station between space allows two cars to be charged
    • Control Module (GPC Partner) have ceiling mounted unit that can slide along the ceiling for different spaceds
  • Airport Parking
    • The Parking Spot (GPC Partner)
    • If car is at lot for 7 hours, you can charge and shift, or valet can move
    • Level 2 charging allows valet option
    • If you’re doing level 1 charging (for lengthy stays), you can cheaply set up a bank of outlets for 110.
  • Payment for EV charging in garages
    • Multiple approaches being offered
    • ChargePoint, 350Green, and others are exploring various options
    • Edison Parking offers free charging. If you pay for parking, you get charging for free. Modest electricity prices absorbed in fee.
    • “Charge cars, not people” is a popular mantra
    • Freejuicebar.com
    • Hotel operators are using free charging. Doesn’t cost operator much and can give hotel competitive advantage
  • Do parking operators anticipate future charging installations?
    • Thoughtful operators and consultants are considering pre-wiring and planning for EVSE
    • Ann Arbor facility, developed by Karl Walker associates,
    • Connecticut is redeveloping highway rest stops. Clean Cities is working with developer to put in wiring.
  • Emerging Practices: What Works?
    • Hype is good
    • Raising the bar and recognizing industry leaders is important
    • Place-making through Iconic and memorable displays (see presentation for examples)
  • Resale of electricity
    • Haven’t encountered any problems
    • It has been an issue for people generating electricity on garages (solar or on-site wind turbines).

Skeeter Buck, Sustainability Manager, Airport Canopy Parking Email: skeeter.buck@propark.com

• Demonstrator site for Green Parking Council
• Located in Commerce City, Colorado
• 4200 parking spaces
• Greenest Parking Structure in the U.S.
  • Wind turbines 16.9kw
  • Solar panels 9.6kw
  • Geothermal
  • LEED Gold: steel is 35% recycled, asphalt 25% recycled, invested in water conservation to save 50% on consumption
  • EV Charging Stations
  • 15 bio-diesel and CNG shuttle vehicles
  • 100% carbon neutral fleet vehicles (achieved in part by purchasing carbon credits)
  • Facility uses 70% less energy than typical property-type
  • Goal for the future: net zero property through increased efficiency and solar
  • EV Charging stations
    • Juice Bar Charging stations: Level 1 and Level 2
    • 6 dual charging stations on property: 2 in valet area, 4 in covered parking
    • Wired for 24 additional units
  • Challenges
    • “Range Anxiety” affects some drivers in Boulder and Denver but shouldn’t be
    • Employing marketing and education to reduce range anxiety
    • How many people will choose to drive their EVs to the airport, instead of another car?
    • Build it and they will come
  • Networking and Collaboration
    • Clean Cities Coalition
    • Rocky Mountain Institute
    • National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL)
    • Department of Public Health and Environment
    • Governor’s Energy Office
  • Strategy
    • Project FEVER (Fostering Electric Vehicles in Expansion in the Rockies) Community Readiness Awardee
    • Build and then expand with increased demand
    • Support service

Michael Farkas, CEO, Car Charging Group Email: mdf@carcharging.com

• Headquartered in Miami, Florida
• Mission is to establish a nationwide infrastructure, enabling EV and PHEV owners to charge their EVs anytime, anywhere
• Residential, multi-family, commercial properties, retail
• Strategy is to be a first in strategic partner with businesses, municipalities, shopping malls, parking garages, multi-family residential and commercial properties, and others who are expected to have high numbers of EVs at their locations
• Landowner partners: shopping malls, retail, entertainment areas
• Best Practices of installing EV charging stations, range of installation costs
  • Not a simple process
  • Visibility of installation and cost of installation need to be balanced
  • Visibility often ends up costing more money.
  • Unique requirements of installing EV charging stations at different types of locations
    • Each type of location needs different types of installations: wall-mounts, pole-mounts, bollards, etc
    • Coulomb units are linked through cell phone.
    • Subterranean installations make communication difficult, so costs may rise
  • EV parking payment mechanisms and how they are integrated into existing parking fees
    • Can’t give away electricity for free
    • Cost of electricity is downplayed. Costs can add up when 15-20% of cars are plugged in
    • Free charging will not work long term
    • Car Charging Group’s business model is based on established norm of paying for “fuel.”
  • Pre-wiring
    • Technology changes, so build in conduit in advance
    • Build in conduit with new construction and pull wiring when necessary
    • Reduces costs when building owner decide to install stations
  • Maximizing EV charging turnover
    • Important that industry figures out way to prevent cars from hogging unused charging stations
  • Level 1 versus Level 2 chargers
    • Business model based on speed of charge
    • Level 2 is preferred choice for billing customers

Please feel free to send suggestions for future topics.

Thanks,

Ben Holland

Thanks to all for another informative webinar.  If you were unable to attend, feel free to view the playback of the full program.
See the minutes below for a description of the following presentations:

Getting Our Region and Communities EV Ready, Robert Graham, Southern California Edison

Lessons Learned (So Far) Mark Perry, Nissan

Plug In Electric Vehicles Education and Outreach, Jeff Barghout and Stacey Carless, Advanced Energy

Plug in America (Paul Scott)

• Produced series of seven PSAs
• Hosted seminar on multi-family EVSE integration
• Planning a larger seminar in greater metro region of LA
• National Plug-In Day: October 16^th
• Anticipating 12 cities to participate
• Event will coincide with release of Revenge of the Electric Car
• Expecting over 100 electric cars at the event
• Anticipating heavy press coverage
• Put together drive-way and house party packets
• Holding first house party in Seattle

Southern California Edison (Bob Graham)

• SCE Strategy for Clean Energy Future

o   Reduce GHG emissions with more energy from renewable resources

o   Smart power deliver manages greater diversity of supply and optimizes existing capacity

o   Smart metering to enable customer energy conservation and peak reduction

o   Plug-In Electric Vehicles to achieve transportation sustainability and distributed energy storage

• EVs aren’t just clustered in one part of region. We’re seeing them all over
• Ensuring that distribution system is not impacted

o   Working with dealerships

o   Putting planners in place to inspect transformer size in advance of vehicle arriving

o   Neighbors of early adopters are the next customers

• Spending a great deal of time tracking customer experience
• Familiarizing call centers and service planners with entire EV process
• Responding to customer demand
• Customer education and outreach: SCE Plug-In Rate Assistant
• Rate calculator helps customers determine savings
• Will also work with individual ratepayers to do in-depth rate
• Established Champion City Program

o   Engage local communities about PEV readiness, with focus on inspection and permitting streamlining

o   Complete verified plans with 30 local governments addressing PEV readiness

o   Recognize cities that have implemented best PEV readiness practices

• Engage with every city
• Majority of SCE’s cities do over-the-counter permitting when person comes in with right documentation.
• Implement public education and outreach program
• Participate actively in regional initiatives
• Implement PEV infrastructure preparedness
• Establish designated PEV point of contact for:

o   Issues resolution

o   Participation in regional initiatives

o   Lessons learned analysis

o   Media relations

• Information is readily available
• Infrastructure finance

o   Participate in regional infrastructure initiatives to apply for Federal and State funding

o   Apply for state and local funding to finance infrastructure

• Near-Term Infrastructure Installation

o   Upgrade 1990s infrastructure to meet current standards

o   Install infrastructure at key travel destinations

o   Work with Commercial and Industrial organizations in community to install and track charging stations

• Create a PEV Readiness Team to plan and implement PEV Readiness Activities

o   Review lessons learned from other communities and apply as appropriate

o   Integrate PEVs into community long range vehicle purchasing plans

o   Acquiring and operating PEVs in the city’s internal vehicle fleet

o   Support funding incentives to encourage residents to buy and operate PEVs

• Initiate Title 24 City Codes to ensure that new codes to ensure that new building construction is PEV Ready

Nissan (Mark Perry)

• What makes a successful launch market?

o   Forecast consumer demand: What is city doing to make friendly environment?

o   Public policy leadership

o   Utility cooperation

o   Consumer incentives certainly help!

o   Public infrastructure equals peace of mind

o   Rolling out where we feel welcome

• What’s your ask?

o   Time and people

o   Incentives for consumers

o   Charging infrastructure

o   Consumer friendly permit process

o   Education public outreach

• Grassroots Holistic Outreach

o   3+ years of WORK

o   1,638 business cards collected

o   27 states

o   308 cities

o   Countless presentations and calls

• What did customers tell us?

o   Educate Me…about everything

o   Make it easy…put it all in one place

§  GoElectricDrive.com

o   Respect…my time and interest in your company

o   Communicate…keep me informed

• Enthusiasts

o   Very passionate about the subject

o   Must not ignore the enthusiasts

• Best Practices

o   SDG&E monthly workshops

o   SCAQMD EV 101 Seminars

o   Oregon Business Council/Portland State/PGE

• We notice what cities are doing
• Results so far

o   Conversion rate from hand raising – 48$%

o   1^st MY sold out

o   82% new to Nissan brand

o   Prius is #1 Conquest Model

o   Average HHI is $140k+

o   Driving less than 60 miles a day

o   Not interested in gasoline AT ALL

Advanced Energy (Stacey Carless and Jeff Barghout)

• Defining Outreach
• Interactive Approaches

o   Educational Forums

o   Workshops

• Providing Resources

o   Collateral

o   Online Resources

o   New Media

• Forums

o   Opportunity to educate

o   Start a discussion

o   Answer questions

• Workshops

o   Inform major stakeholders

o   Start a conversation

o   Generate ad Answer Questions

o   Collection of Ideas

o   Interactivity

o   Determine barriers and explore different perspectives

• Charging Station and Installation Handbook

o   Overviews, guidelines and checklists to help contactors and inspectors

• Community Planning Guide

o   Help communities with all aspects of planning and preparing for PEVs

• Advanced Energy website

o   EVSE Web Tool: Single resource for charging station information

o   Access to print resources

o   Workshops

o   General PEV information

• Raleigh Television Network: broadcasts of workshops
• YouTube Videos

o   Charging Station Installation

o   How to Charge Your PEV

Save the Date

• Portland State University and Portland General Electric
• November 1-3
• Getting to a Million
• Clean Cities Coaltion, Clinton Climate Initiative, Electrification Coalition

Open Discusion

SCE Rate Plans

• Whole house rate: created years ago to incentivize people to us pool pumps between 9pm and 6am
• Low rate EV rate
• Third rate: Second panel and second meter
• Majority of customers are using whole house

o   SCE can use smart connect system to implement wirelessly

Question: Is policy or general public education more important?

• Bob Graham: Education and Outreach is most important action by all stakeholders

o   It’s critical that anyone getting federal dollars for fleets should be buying EVs

• Mark Perry: Debt crisis puts everything on the table for negotiation again

o   From a consumer standpoint, the level of support that’s out there now is not guaranteed for the future

o   Only a one year extension for tax credit

o   Need to “man the battle stations” and make sure we keep what we have

·     IEEE: Mary Reidy

·     SAE Communications Standards: Jim Scholer

·     ANSI Electric Vehicles Standards Panel: Jim McCabe

Project Get Ready Webinar Minutes

June 21, 2011

RMI Update

o    PGR Partner Calls

• PGR webinars have grown in size, necessitating individual city partner calls

• RMI will work with cities to identify top of mind issues, challenges and long term goals

• PGR webinars will be framed around chief concerns of partners and other stakeholders

o   EVSE installation costs

• RMI is working to disaggregating cost for EVSE installations

• Identifying components that drive costs

• Goal is to inform partners and stakeholders interested in investing in infrastructure

IEEE Standards Association: EV Standards Development (Mary Reidy, National Grid)

• Global standards are critical to smart grid success
• Technology behind smart grid is advancing rapidly
• IEEE will focus on fostering interoperability

o   Ensure any device from any manufacturer can plug into the grid

• IEEE working closely with standards bodies: ISO, ITU, IEC, SAE, AICTO
• Developing or updating in excess of 100 global standards relevant to smart grid
• Global Smart Grid Challenges

o   Future energy supplies through use of renewables

o   Use of technology to increase system efficiency and reliability

o   Policy, regulatory, and security debates

o   Educating consumers to prepare them for lifestyle changes

o   Cross-technology integration (IT, Communications, Support Services)

• IEEE Smart Grid Standards Initiatives

o   Interoperability of electric power, IT, and communications systems

o   Powerline communications and networking, regenerative interconnection, automotive interconnection, storage, high voltage technology

o   Incubation and bringing new technologies from research into standards development

• IEEE P2030.1 Working Group

o   Purpose: Development of a guide for electric sourced transportation and its impact on the grid

o   Currently drafting working documents for task force groups

o   Four task force groups: Vehicle technology, Electric Grid, Roadmap, Communication and Cyber Security

o   Webinars held bi-monthly to address development of each task force

o   Task Force 2 (Electric Grid) draft document distributed to working group and was reviewed on June 24^th webinar

o   Next steps: Vehicle Technology draft (End of Summer 2011), Roadmap (TBD), Communications and Cyber Security (TBD)

SAE PEV Communication Task Force

• J2836: Creating use cases to tell story of what SAE wants to accomplish
• Use cases are then used to create corresponding requirements
• Communication Requirement: Energy service interface (ESI)
• Developing mapping document to determine needs for consumer experience
• DC level 2 (50-80kw stations) is current focus of task force
• Creating standard for DC combo connector
• DC standard (connector and communications) will be fully tested and ready for implementation by end of 2011
• Use cases are published and available on SAE site
• Standards are being entered into NIST catalog of standards

American National Standards Institute (ANSI): Electric Vehicles Standards Panel (Jim McCabe)

• Mission: Foster coordination and collaboration on standardization matters among public and private sector stakeholders to enable the safe, mass deployment of electric vehicles and associated infrastructure
• Tasks:

o   Catalog existing standards (published, in development, under revision)

o   Identify gaps and harmonization issues

o   Make recommendations for addressing gaps and issues and do the same for related conformity assessment program

• NFPA 70 definition of electric vehicle includes plug-in hybrids
• Architecture of EVSP

o   Vehicle Domain

• Energy Storage Systems Working Group (WG)

• Vehicle Components WG

• Vehicle User Interface

• Infrastructure Domain

• Charging Systems WG

• Infrastructure Communications WG

• Infrastructure Installation WG

• Infrastructure User Interface WG

• Support Services Domain

• Education and Training WG

• Draft Project Timeline

• First Plenary Meeting (June 20-21)

• 1^st and 2^nd WG Conference Calls  (weeks of Jun 27- Jul 18)

• 3^rd and 4^th WG conference calls (weeks of Jul 25 – Aug 15)

• Steering Committee Meeting (week of Aug 15^th)

• Progress update at SAE / NFPA summit (Sept 27-28)

• Publish / Promote Roadmap Version One (Oct – Nov)

Please feel free to send suggestions for future topics.

Thanks to all for another informative meeting.  See the minutes below for a description of the following presentations:

·     The EV Project: Jim Francfort (INL) and Steve Schey (Ecotality)]

·     Charge Point America: Richard Lowenthal

·     Northeast Utilities: Watson Collins

Project Get Ready Webinar Minutes

May 17, 2011

RMI Research: EVs and Economic Development

• Despite lots of discussion in the media about whether EVs actually create jobs or help local economies we haven’t seen a lot of research
• RMI surveyed regions with early EV and EVSE deployment to understand job effects
• RMI reviewed academic literature on job creation and local spending multipliers
• Analysis to be released over the next month and we welcome your feedback

New Staff

• Jay Tankersley – jtankersley@rmi.org
• Jana Holt – jholt@rmi.org

EV Project Deployment and Data Collection: Steve Schey (Ecotality) and Jim Francfort (INL).

• Participants: Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity (AVTA), Idaho National Laboratory (INL), and ECOtality
• AVTA Goals: Petroleum reduction, assist fleet managers, benchmark data for modelers, R&D programs, vehicle manufacturers, and goal setters
• INL: Multi-Program DOE Laboratory (Nuclear, Fossil, Biomass, Wind, Geothermal, Hydro, Advanced Vehicles and Battery Dev., Energy critical infrastructure protection
• The EV Project: $230 Million Project ($115 Million from DOE, $115 match)

o   Plan, build, study evaluate

• EV Project Micro-Climate Plan

o   Community planning

o   Road Mapping

o   Infrastructure Implementation

• Residential Infrastructure

o   5,700 Nissan Leafs, 2,600 Chevy Volts

o   8,300 Level 2 residential EVSE

• EV Project Commercial Infrastructure

o   5,300 Level 2 public EVSE in retail, municipal, and employer locations

o   200 Dual port DC fast chargers

• Data Collection:

o   Vehicle performance, operational and ambient conditions, charging profiles

o   Infrastructure: siting, use Time-of-Day pricing, Charging level (I,II, fast charging) utilization, public vs private, at home vs. public, micro vs. macro grid issues

o   Quantified testing results that avoid subjective reporting

• Data management process

o   Data is collected in file server warehouse

o   Producing data quality reports, individual vehicle reports, fleet summary reports, focused technical analyses and custom reports, modeling and simulation

• Data visualizations

o   Distribution of number of charging events per day

o   Distribution of distance driven per vehicle per day

o   Battery State of Charge after last trip of the day

o   Battery state of charge before first trip of the day, when charged the night before

o   Battery state of charge at the start of charging events, between trips

o   Batter state of charge at the end of charging events, between trips

• Vehicle data parameters

o   Vehicle ID, Data/Time Stamp, Event type, odometer, state of charge, GPS, fuel consumption (for some vehicles)

• Nissan Leaf Usage Reports

o   Number of trips, total distance traveled, average distance per day, average number of trips between charging events, average distance traveled between charging events, average number of charging events

o   Charging location and type: Number of charging events by home (Level 2) and away-from-home (Level 2, fast charge, non-project), total electricity consumed (AC MWh)

o   Number of complete charging events, number of partial charging events, home and away state of charge, % of distance driven in ch arge depleting vs. charge sustaining mode (Volt only)

• Overview Report:

o   Charging infrastructure reported by regions: number of EV Project EVSE and fast chargers installed, number of charging events performed, electricity consumed (AC MWh)

o   Vehicles reported by regions: EV Project Leafs and Volts enrolled to date, number of trips, distance driven

• Future EV Project Activities: 117 metrics and plots including

o   Charging unit utiliziation

o   Aggregate charging demand vs. time of day and day of the week

o   Individual charging even metrics: How often, how long, how empty, how full

o   Reporting by various subgroups

Coulomb Technologies/ChargePoint America: Richard Lowenthal, Founder and CTO, Coulomb Technologies

• Network offerings

o   24/7 Driver Support and Services

o   Billing and authentication

o   Station management

o   Fleet management

o   Energy management

• Necessary for:

o   Condos and apartments, workplace charging, public lots, curbside, retail charging, residential smart charging

• Where will we charge?

o   Home, work, retail and recreation (where we shop and play)

• How many are needed

o   2 chargers per EV

o   3 million EVS WORLDWIDE BY 2015

o   North America will need 2 million chargers

o   Locations: Single family home with garage, multi-dwelling units, workplace, public

• 4000+ stations shipped to 700 customers since 2008
• Operating in 14 countries
• Breakdown of customers:39% businesses, 37% municipalities, 22% utilities, 2% automakers
• Open architecture: driving billing, management/control, vehicle telematics, mobile devices, utility office AMI
• Open API, open EVSE interface, open driver interface
• Charging Service models: workplace, city, apartment building, pure service provider, hotel, retail
• ChargePoint America Key Objectives

o   2,600 public commercial charging

o   2,000 home charging systems

o   Deployment aligned with early round of cars: NYC, DC, Boston, Orlando, Detroit, Austin, Sacramento, San Francisco, LA, Redmond/Bellevue, Washington State

o   DOE is paying for stations, local grants or owners paying for installation

o   In California, the energy commission pays for installation

• Data going to INL

o   Where stations are going in, which home, which are commercial

o   15 minute interval data on energy dispensed: peak power, average power, energy, start-stop times, faults

o   Weekly updates in csv format

o   3 year study – station host keeps stations permanently

• PHEVs charge twice as much as BEVs

o   PHEV drivers want to charge at home and at work, to avoid using gasoline

o   BEV drivers charge about once a day

• Cities can’t give away electricity
• IRS employee charging when a business offers free employee charging
• Myth Busting

o   Home Charging tends to happen on peak, if uncontrolled

o   Charge at work is typically off-peak

o   With incentives and fuel savings, EVs make economic sense

o   The Leaf economic case is a slam dunk: with higher starting price, resale value will be higher; lower fuel and maintenance will save $2,00 a year

o   Volt saves $1,300 a year in fuel and maintenance costs

Northeast Utilities: Watson Collins, Manager, Business Development

• Founder and chair of Regional Electric Vehicle Initiative (REVI) with NSTAR, National Grid, UL, CMEEC, MMWEC
• Installed six Level II (240v) charging stations at NU facilities
• Pursuing multiphase utility research program

o   Capture lessons learned

o   Current project focused on away-from-home charging

o   Future pilot testing to include residential charging

o   Proposed study of charging in large metropolitan area (w/NSTAR)

• Physical utility system infrastructure and EV recharging

o   Rule of thumb: A 5% penetration rate of EVs increases total kWh by about 1%

o   Some potential for local distribution levels depending on various factors

o   Policies needed to promote diversified overnight/off-peak charging for minimum impact on distribution system

• NU looks at EV adoption in three time horizons

o   Now (2011): ~500-1,000 cars; some amount of public charging infastructure

o   Soon (2012-2014): ~5,000 cars/yr; Additional public charging stations added

o   Future (2015 or later): 10,000-20,000 cars/yr; uncertain need, business model and standards

• Recharging overnight is the common denominator

o   Parked and charging while you sleep

o   Emissions profile of electricity generation varies by region, time of day and season

o   Electricity system optimization: capacity exists in utility system overnight; plug-in vehicle recharging can reduce electric rates if done right (broader cost allocation)

• Future opportunities

o   V2G or other grid services

o   Battery swapping

o   Pathway recharging (e.g., highway stops)

• Optimizing existing utility investments

1.     Capacity of chargers

a.     Lower capacity chargers are not likely to cause significant utility impacts, but high capacity (10kW and above) chargers in residential locations will impact utility system

b.     Ratemaking policy for distribution  upgrades associated PEV recharging and utility demand charges may need to address high capacity charging locations

2.     Metering and ‘Smart’ charging

a.     Metering approaches defined (submeter, facility meter, etc)

b.     Off-peak recharging approach needs to be tested: information based with price signals to consumers (TOU rates) or centrally controlled

c.      TOU rates for just the vehicle or whole ho use

3.     Interoperability

a.     The franchise utility can’t inferface with multiple ‘closed’ systems. ‘Open’ systems based on common standards needed’

4.     Utility notification of charging locations

a.     Utilities can accommodate if we know when and where

5.     Consumer protection

a.     Important to preserve the fuel cost advantage of EVs for consumers, given high first cost of the vehicles

Next Webinar: June 14, 2011, 1pm EST

Theme: Standards for electric vehicles, EVSE and smart grid communication protocols.

• Mary Reidy, Chair, IEEE Standards Association
• Rich Scholer, Ford, SAE
• James McCabe, American National Standards Institute (ANSI)

Thanks to all for another informative meeting. If you were unable to attend, feel free to view the playback of the full PGR webinar.

Important note: An invitation for our May 17th webinar will follow this email. Some of you will receive a notice for a new PGR mailing list. We reached our capacity on our previous listserv, so we’re now transferring email addresses to a new PGR Google group.

See the minutes below for a description of the following presentations:

·     New York City – Ari Kahn (PDF)

·     Fort Collins - Mike Freeman (PDF)

·     Power Tagging – John LoPorto (PDF)

Project Get Ready Webinar Minutes

April 26, 2011

RMI Update: Ben Holland

New Resources

• Air quality impacts of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles in Texas: evaluating three battery charging scenarios.
• Estimating the Costs and Benefits of the Smart Grid

DOE Funding Opportunity Announcement

• “Clean Cities Community Readiness and Planning for Plug-in Electric Vehicles and Charging Infrastructure”
• DE-FOA-0000451 Clean Cities FY 2011 FOA.
• Press Release

Ari Kahn: EV Program Manager, NYC Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability.

• Implementing McKinsey study
• Educate and recognize challenges and opportunities
• Remove barriers to adoption
• Focusing on commercial parking lots
• Working with ConEd and Nissan to analyze impacts of EVs on older buildings
• Northeast partnership with Boston and Philadelphia

o   Pooling efforts around research and outreach

• Enhancing the Feasibility of Electric Vehicles in New York City:

o   Study conducted by Columbia University

o   Two part analysis

o   EV adoption and EVSE mapping

o   Utility best practices

• Geospatial analysis

o   Mapped key EV adoption indicators

o   Most educated, highest income, previous hybrid sales

Mike Freeman, Director of Economic Development, City of Fort Collins

• Studying implications of renewable energy, storage and EV for utility
• Expects uptake of vehicle electrification to be significant
• Demonstration project looking at ways to offset incremental load of EV, with renewables and storage
• Fire and Ice: Solar system and Ice Energy storage
• Implementing at neighborhood level
• Seeking residential opportunities for testing
• Project goals:

o   Model and simulate impacts of Fire and ice

o   Develop new business models for charging

o   Develop software systems that manage interplay of information

o   Global visibility

• Coordinating with Denver and Boulder

John LoPorto, CEO, Power Tagging, Inc.

• Power Tagging offers communications architecture for electric utilities to deploy on the grid
• Technology allows utilities to tag/fingerprint energy on the grid
• Bi-directional communication
• Makes loads on the grid self aware
• Grid recognizes type of load and location
• Vehicle Intelligence Module (VIM) acts similar to SIM card in cell phone
• Instead of operating over cell network VIM is embedded into EV charging circuitry
• Allows utilities to see electrically, where cars are plugging in
• Helps plan for roaming and unpredictable loads on transformers
• Real-time data collection

o   Collect and report back to utility

o   Use for road tax, instead of GPS VMT reporting

o   Eliminates privacy concerns

• When vehicle plugs in it reports back electrical location
• Acts like a network location on the internet
• Self-updating and self-provisioning

Next Webinar: May 17, 2011

• James Francfort, Idaho National Lab
• Steve Schey, Ecotality
• Richard Lowenthal, Coulomb Technologies
• Watson Collins, Northeast Utilities

Download the report

Abstract
The air quality impacts of replacing approximately 20% of the gasoline-powered light duty vehicle
miles traveled (VMT) with electric VMT by the year 2018 were examined for four major cities in
Texas: Dallas/Ft Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio. Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV)
charging was assumed to occur on the electric grid controlled by the Electricity Reliability Council of
Texas (ERCOT), and three charging scenarios were examined: nighttime charging, charging to
maximize battery life, and charging to maximize driver convenience. A subset of electricity generating
units (EGUs) in Texas that were found to contribute the majority of the electricity generation needed to
charge PHEVs at the times of day associated with each scenario was modeled using a regional
photochemical model (CAMx). The net impacts of the PHEVs on the emissions of precursors to the
formation of ozone included an increase in NOx emissions from EGUs during times of day when the
vehicle is charging, and a decrease in NOx from mobile emissions. The changes in maximum daily 8 h
ozone concentrations and average exposure potential at twelve air quality monitors in Texas were
predicted on the basis of these changes in NOx emissions. For all scenarios, at all monitors, the impact
of changes in vehicular emissions, rather than EGU emissions, dominated the ozone impact. In general,
PHEVs lead to an increase in ozone during nighttime hours (due to decreased scavenging from both
vehicles and EGU stacks) and a decrease in ozone during daytime hours. A few monitors showed a
larger increase in ozone for the convenience charging scenario versus the other two scenarios.
Additionally, cumulative ozone exposure results indicate that nighttime charging is most likely to
reduce a measure of ozone exposure potential versus the other two scenarios.

Download the report

Abstract

The present electric power delivery infrastructure was not designed to meet the increased demands of a restructured electricity marketplace, the energy needs of a digital society, or the increased use and variability of renewable power production. As a result, there is a national imperative to upgrade the current power delivery system to the higher performance levels required to support continued economic growth and to improve productivity to compete internationally. To these ends, the Smart Grid integrates and enhances other necessary elements including traditional upgrades and new grid technologies with renewable generation, storage, increased consumer participation, sensors, communications and computational ability. According to the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the Smart Grid will be designed to ensure high levels of security, quality, reliability, and availability of electric power; improve economic productivity and quality of life; and minimize environmental impact while maximizing safety. Characterized by a two-way flow of electricity and information between utilities and consumers, the Smart Grid will deliver real-time information and enable the near-instantaneous balance of supply (capacity) and demand at the device level.

March, 15th, 2011

Webinar Playback

RMI Update: Matt Mattila and Ben Holland

• RMI is continuing “data multiplier” role and appreciates support from cities and tech advisers

• Exploring partnerships and data collection efforts
  • GeoEVSE Initiative with NREL, Google, Plug In America and others.
  • Working with international partners to develop strategy for data collection and dissemination
• Created PGR LinkedIn page to help partners connect

BMW: Aaron Singer and Peter Dempster

• Mini-E U.S. pilot started summer 2009, fleet of 450 all electric mini-es in LA and New York metro areas
• Study analyzed how customer intracts with EV on day to day basis
• Challenges
  • Delays and roadblocks to successful implementation of home charging
  • Mini-Es used proprietary connector which came out between old and new J1772
  • We’ve taken what we’ve learned and will have another trial
  • BMW Active-E trial: taking lessons from mini-e and applying them to Active-E
  • Using fully certified J1772 box and we have a more robust data flow between installation company and utilities
• 54 participants in consumer study run by UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies
  • Three-quarters of drivers lived within 20 miles of work
  • Nearly all MINI E customers could reliably drive between 80 and 100 miles on a charge
  • One customer drove 50,000 miles in 15 months
  • Trip Composition expands as drivers get more comfortable with range. EV-activity space is expanded
• Public infrastructure was unavailable for U.S. study
• Drivers become less anxious about range
  • 32% said they felt range anxiety between 2-4 times a year
  • These customers drove on average 8600 miles in one year, some up to 40,000
• Home EVSE is perfectly suitable to meet customer’s needs
  • 42% of customers plugged in when they got home
  • 15% charged every 3 days
  • Battery state of charge is 40-60% on average when it’s plugged in
• Two-thirds of drivers said that driving the Mini-E changed the way they think about energy use, in and out of the car

GM: Britta Gross

• Volt’s initial markets: New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California, Texas and Michigan
• Vehicles are migrating to other states
• Over 1000 on the road now
• On target for 10,000 vehicles at the end of this year and an additional 45,000 by end of next year
• Full roll out to all 50 states by the end of the 2011
• 650 dealers in first round 7 states, another 650 service sites around the country
• Early notification system: When orders come in from dealers, GM asks customer to fill out survey about charging needs
  • 120 volt cord set comes with volt for regular outlet, but if you want to step up to 240, you fill out form
  • Asked to share address with utility for local grid analysis
  • If they don’t opt out, send email to utilities, telling them which addresses will be charging EVs
  • Enables utilities to step back and take look at aggregations, clustering in neighborhoods
  • 90% are opting in to give utility address

• Very few issues, but clustering is occuring

• Inspector and contractor outreach
  • Members of team are in San Fran, LA, and San Diego with NECA and IBEW
  • Doing outreach with inspectors and contractors in the area
  • Lessons learned – what’s helpful to know in advance
  • Working with National Fire Protection Agency, emergency repsponders
• Permitting costs ranging from $50-$300
• Variability and, complexity over rates
• Simplify Everything: Permitting, options, local incentive programs

Hertz: Jack Hidary

• Out to market this past December with first rentals and shares of EVs
• New York launch went well:  7,000 consumers came for launch
• Offering wide range of vehicles: Volt, Leaf, I-MIEV, Smart EV, and others
• Announcing four different models of Renault in Europe and launching in China
• Partnerships key: working with utilities, hospitality company and others
• Putting in stations ourselves and some partners are installing
• “EV 2.0″: critical that the stations are connected
• Need to enable customers to see stations ahead of time, as well as status and availability
• Encouraging station companies to enable internet connectivity

Enterprise: Jeff Morrell and Kyle Sabie

• 55% of entire fleet of vehicles have 28 mpg or higher
• All vehicles are available through variety of distribution models
• Working with strategic partners and manufacturers to makes sure early adopters have positive experience
• Focusing on ease of use
• As infrastructure and strategic partners continues to grow, we can introduce EVs into WeCar share program
• Bringing EVs to market through car share, dedicated use, long term rentals
• Home City plus will be good fit for EV
  • Driving around familiar territory
  • Fits model that manufacturers talk about when they look at retail sales target
  • Home city exposure could lead to 100-200 unique experiences and test drives every year
  • Provides educational opportunity for drivers unfamiliar with EV technology
  • Will show customers how cars function and charge.

• 500 nissan leafs delivered in 2011
• Several orders of the Volt are on order

EDTA – Terry Johnson

• National Plug-in Vehicle Initiative
• Transitioning from Policy and Technical issues to Education and Outreach
• Addressing market and institutional barriers
• Educate consumers/key sectors on PEV basics – Purpose of GoElectricDrive.com
  • Resource Locator
  • Incentives ­– access DOE/AFDC database
  • Route to serving Utilities for their PEV-related rate schedules/service implementation resources
  • Linking to RMI’s Project Get Ready cities through zip code locators
  • Energy Cost/CO2 calculator
  • Charging station locator (future)
• Strategic Initiatives
  • GeoEVSE Forum – Unify charging database
  • Utility PEV Implementation planning: Planning template
  • Public-Private partnership Initiative: Model Cities plan led by Chad Bell of Best Buy

Read more and download here.

View the case studies here.

Electric Vehicles North Texas (EVNT) was created to coordinate a partnership and develop a plan to enhance the implementation of recharging infrastructure and purchase of vehicles.  Stakeholders include the Dallas-Fort Worth Clean Cities Coalition (DFWCCC), utility companies, regional governments, school districts, transit authorities, local businesses, plug-in vehicle (PEV) manufacturers, recharging infrastructure producers, and other stakeholders.

The EVNT program began focusing efforts within the nine counties in the Dallas-Fort Worth 8-Hour Ozone Nonattainment area which currently includes:  Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, and Tarrant counties.

The stakeholder group was formed for local governments and businesses.  Industry leaders from both infrastructure and vehicles manufacturing were brought in to discuss the future of electric vehicles.  Quarterly stakeholder meetings are held with the group which now includes 85 participants from over 25 entities.

2010 Deliverables

• Constructed regional and statewide coordination groups
• Identified the needs and opportunities that EVs bring to our region
• Developed a regional contractor listing
• Introduced EVSE into adopted regional codes
• Identified regional data projects and made contacts with the distributors
• Hosted EVNT Plug-In Texas Roundtable:  a meeting and discussion on statewide efforts to prepare Texas for electric vehicles; goals set were to collaborate and unify efforts across the state and create a statewide coalition (June 23, 2010)
• Promoted EVNT Ford Focus Ride and Drive and Panel Discussion: Ford Motor Company and Oncor Electric Delivery worked together to develop a consumer outreach and education program on electric vehicles as well as sharing information on charging needs and requirements to ensure the electrical grid can support customers’ needs;   cooperation between Ford and Oncor also included working with state and local officials on the most efficient ways to bring EVs to North Texas (Sept 16, 2010)

• Coordinated EV Showcase: produced through a partnership with the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG), DFWCCC, the North Texas Clean Air Coalition, and the USGBC North Texas Chapter and Chevrolet; during the EV Showcase, the general public could view various electric vehicles, tour Oncor’s Mobile Experience Center and learn about electric vehicles and the synergies that come from putting cars, buildings, the electrical grid and renewable energy together (Sept 23-24 2010)

2011 Deliverables

• Continued to research and apply for funding on behalf of North Texas to assist in the implementation of PEVs and associated recharging infrastructure
• Conducted research into PEV financial incentives
• Provided consumer education on recharging best practices
• Promoted recharging station installations at local employers, retailers, and other high traffic locations
• Conducted research to ensure PEV owners needs are supported to enhance regional PEV technology acceptance
• Continued to facilitate streamlined infrastructure permitting
• Partnered with John Wright Associates and GE to hold a PEV and infrastructure demonstration; potential funding opportunities were presented as well as legislative updates (April 13, 2011)
• Held the EVNT Inspector, Contractor, and First Responder Training: in cooperation with GM and SPX Service Solutions, training sessions for electrical contractors and inspectors were held at Oncor’s corporate offices in Dallas; SPX has launched an EVSE program to fully support all aspects of program deployment and successful roll-out of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) PEV programs; NCTCOG and DFWCCC has continually worked to develop a list of electrical contractors that will be a part of EVSE installation; this training supported the continued commitment of purchasing, installing, and getting EVSE equipment inspected within 48 hours of purchasing a PEV (May 3, 2011)

2012 Goals

• Hold training for electrical contractors and inspectors on EVSE charger products, codes/standards, and utility coordination incentives
• Provide training for fleet owners, operators, and technicians of PEVs and EVSE technology
• Conduct outreach to multi-family residential companies (apartment complexes, condominiums, and planned community developments) on EVSE technology
• Host business community needs to offer employees and customers in way of PEV charging and parking opportunities
• Continue outreach to school districts on PEVs and EVSE
• Hold outreach to realtors on PEVs and EVSE
• Expand the heavy-duty component of the EVNT program by coordinating with local fleets and manufacturing companies

For more information on the North Texas Project Get Ready efforts, please contact:

Jenny Danieau

Senior Transportation Planner

North Central Texas Council of Governments

817-608-2342

jdanieau@nctcog.org

www.nctcog.org/evnt

Houston’s EV Readiness Program

Houston EVSE Permitting Process

·      OSU CAR Presentation on Upcoming Research

·      GE Presentation on EVSE and Fleets

·      Electrification Coalition Presentation on Fleet Roadmap
Happy Holidays from all of us at RMI!

Project Get Ready City and Tech Advisers Call

December, 14th, 2010

General Updates

New Resources RMI – Ben Holland

·      Raleigh YouTube Video: Installing Public Charging Stations

·      DOE Technical Assistance Program: Preparing for the Arrival of Electric Vehicles

·      Charging Infrastructure Data Collection Guidelines

·      Clean Cities Webinar: Charging Infrastructure, Micro-Climate Process and Data-Collection.

·      Technology Review: BMW Group Electric Vehicle Program

·      Preparing for the Rollout of Electric Vehicles

·      King County VanPool Presentation

·      Electrification Coalition Fleet Roadmap

Data Collection RMI- Ben Holland

Project Get Ready is collecting EVSE installation information from its city partners and technical advisers. By gathering data about the installation costs and permitting times–and how each varies by location–we intend to develop best practices for EVSE infrastructure investments.

So far we’ve collected a small segment of the data, so thank you to Richmond, Houston, Kansas City and Indianapolis for providing your data.  And thank you to all of our partners for being patient in this effort.

City Updates

Indianapolis – Tim Pulliam: tpulliam@cincorp.com

·      Think North America has delivered 15 cars to State of Indiana: 12 used as state park patrol vehicles, 3 used as state pool vehicles

·      Next Round of Vehicles will be deployed by Think in near future.

·      EVSE Installations: Duke Energy and IPL are doing site assessments and determining costs of installation. First installations will be complete by end of year.

·      Secondary Battery Life: MOU between Duke Energy and Itochu Corporation to analyze battery degradation and evaluate secondary applications.

Kansas City – Larry Kinder: larry.kinder@lilypadev.com

·      Two charging stations installed

·      10 additional EVSE on the way

·      KC Plug-In Ready Task Force is working on actionable deployment plan

Rhode Island – Al Dahlberg: albert_a_dahlberg@brown.edu

·      Working with private companies that are interested in installing EVSE

·      Seeking funding for future EVSE deployment

Houston – Laura Spanjian: laura.spanjian@houstontx.gov

·      NRG EV Services, Houston, is first residential energy provider to provide funding for charging stations

·      Installing 50 fast charge and 100 level 2 throughout Houston

·      Incentives available for EVSE for purchasers of Leaf or Volt

Boulder – Paul Nelson: paul.nelson@saoradh.com

·      Boulder EV Project:  Supporting installation of 30 EVSE, City is providing rebates to put in EVSE in businesses, plan is to have 45 EVSE installed by end of 1^st Quarter 2011

·      Targeting EV deployment (PHEVs and BEVs): 100 in 2011; 200 in 2012

·      Conducting Vehicle to Building interaction

·      Some buildings in the program with EVSE will be locations that have installed PV

Toronto – Ben Marans bmarans@tfund.org

·      Fleetwise EV 300 Program is recruiting new OEM partners

·      Partnership with Nissan Canada: Committing 500 Leafs to public and private fleets.  Azure Dynamics providing Transit Connect.

·      Fleet Servicing: Fleet Karma tool developed to help fleets do analysis of current vehicles and determine need for EV. Also analyzing driver experiences.

·      Toronto Hydro installed charging stations

·      Sheraton Hotel installed 2 EVSE

·      Electric Mobility EV Conference in September 2011

Orlando – John Parker john.parker@ocfl.net

·      Launched new interactive website, which includes a locator map for tracking charging stations

·      300 public EVSE to be installed in 70-mile radius of downtown Orlando

Amsterdam – Roland Steinmetz r.steinmetz@evconsult.nl

·      100 EVSE installed in city, with 2-4 Fast Charging Stations being installed in February

·      1000 Leafs arriving in February

·      Total of 2000 EV in 2001

·      50% of difference between EV and ICE is being subsidized; free parking and charging for 1st year

EV Pilot Studies

University of Colorado – Alison Peters, Managing Director, Deming Center for Entrepreneurship

·      18 Prius PHEVs used in household study

·      13 Mile Charge may encourage public charging

o Will be able to gather data on frequency of use of public EVSE

·      Smart Grid Program enables good data collection

·      Current challenges with data collection instruments

·      1 of 5 cities to participate in Toyota program
Ohio State Center for Automotive Research – Giorgio Rizzoni, Director, OSU CAR

·      Gathered group of utilities and OEMs into consortium

·      Modeling PHEV grid integration with info provided by OEMs and Utilities

·      Analyzing battery aging in plug-in vehicle applications, as well as secondary use and aging cycles

·      Collaboration with American Electric Power, Duke Energy, First Energy, Dayton Power and Light and PJM

·      Gathered together 10 fleet vehicles to acquire data.  OSU CAR collects data off cars, using the information to inform vehicle grid models, sharing information with electric utilities.  Working closely with City of Columbus and ODOT.

·      Six EVSE on order will be located at CAR and available to public

GE Watt Stations and Fleet Purchase – Michael Mahan, Global Product Manager

·      Largest ever single EV commitment: 25,000 by 2015

·      Deployment will be coupled with about 35,000 EVSE installed around the country

·      Data sharing: Building up list on type of information to track, either data of chargers or telematics on vehicles, number of times a day charged, preferred location, etc.

·      EVSE Deployment: Will build out line over the next 2 years, by end of 2011- 58 different charging stations, indoor/outdoor enclosure, Watt Station

·      Partnership with Better Place:  Technology standards and fleet deployments, battery financing for projects abroad, working together on market development

Electrification Coalition Fleet Roadmap – Sam Ori, Director of Policy

·      Fleet Study: fleets are an ideal place where uptake could be rapid

·      Fleet managers almost always rank TCO as most significant factor

·      Route predictability could allow fleet operators to right size batteries

·      High vehicle utilization rates increase number of miles traveled, accelerating payback period of EVs for fleet operators

·      Parking facilities allow fleet operators to minimize investment in public charging and benefit from economies of scale in installation

·      Report findings:

o   Even without government subsidies, traditional hybrids are most cost effective for many fleets

o   Falling battery and component costs favor EVs by mid-decade

o   EVs and PHEVs become most cost effective option between 2016 and 2020 assuming no incentives

o   Battery residual risk is key obstacle

·      200,000 EVs on the road in commercial and government fleets by 2015

Authors: Jesse Cohn, Brandan Lai, Max Monn, Quinn Savit, Kayla Weisdorf

Abstract:

“Through PGR RI, we will prepare the state of Rhode Island for the future. We began by researching other Project Get Ready initiatives throughout the continent that have already taken steps toward implementing a functional EV infrastructure. We then evaluated the current status of the PGR RI initiative and how we could facilitate the establishment of the electric vehicle as a valid means of transportation within the state. Our subsequent role was essentially twofold: to provide research on electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) technology and manufacturers and to identify potential sites for public charging. In this report, we will discuss our entire approach, beginning with a brief history of alternative fuels and the electric car. We will then detail the present state of PGR RI, and what we specifically contributed to the progress of the venture: our compilation of EVSE technology research, a summary of the Rhode Island planning manual for installing EVSE, possible plug-in locations, and branding. Finally we will outline our recommendations for the future of PGR RI.”

Abstract

Electric vehicle adoption has the potential to wean America off its current unsustainable appetite for oil, which poses a risk to the global economy, security and environment.  The goal of this research is to assess the greenhouse gas emissions impact of electric vehicle adoption on individual and in Rhode Island on a fleetwide level between 2010 and 2030. A Battery electric vehicle reduces lifetime emissions by 90 percent compared to a conventional vehicle.  Statewide emissions impact is analyzed using scenario analysis that compares a Business-As-Usual Scenario (no plug-in vehicle adoption) with a 50% Plug-in-Vehicle Adoption Scenario (50% new vehicle sales in 2030).  The plug-in vehicle scenario reduces transportation emissions by 1.36 million metric tons (MMT), or 37 percent, for 2030, and reduces emissions by 9.6 MMT, 13%, between 2010 and 2030. The extent of electric vehicle adoption in Rhode Island is dependant on reducing vehicle upfront cost, installing a comprehensive charging infrastructure (including Level III Quick Charge stations), and developing a host of policies and public awareness campaigns in order to encourage PEV adoption.  The Low Carbon Fuel Standard, and tax rebates on the upfront cost of plug-in vehicles are two policy measures that have potential to encourage plug-in vehicle adoption. The introduction of electricity as a vehicle fuel source will shift a piece of the burden of transportation emissions onto the electric sector.  Plug-in electric vehicle adoption must be examined on a regional scale in order to assess the current grid’s capacity to support electric vehicle charging.  Implementing a valley-filling approach, like off-peak and time-of-use pricing, could greatly improve the grid’s efficiency and maximize capacity. The positive greenhouse gas emissions impact should encourage policy makers, industry, and citizenry to work together to bring about plug-in electric vehicle adoption in Rhode Island.

1. Trenching
2. Electrical Panel Box
3. Installation of Conduit
4. Inspection of Groundwork
5. Installation of Bracket Footing and Bollards
6. Installation of Charging Stations on Mounting Brackets
7. Testing of Charging Units
8. Final Inspection

Watch this video and others on Raleigh’s YouTube Channel.

Summary:

“Additional charging infrastructure deployments, installed by 3rd parties, are welcome additions to
the eTec Project, as this will provide a more infrastructure-rich charging environment. However,
in order to be added to the eTec Project, all charging infrastructure most be safe and capable of
providing the same charging event information, in the same format, and at the same frequency as
the infrastructure installed by the eTec-Project participants. The DOE provided scope for this
ARRA funded project has very defined data collection, evaluation, and dissemination
requirements for a massive amount of charging infrastructure. These requirements and the mass
of instrumented vehicles and charging infrastructure necessitate that the data handling and
reporting be conducted in the most economical and similar manner possible. Therefore, any
organization can install infrastructure at their choice, but it is not possible to consider it part of
the eTec-Project unless it is installed and provides data in the same exact manner as the 12,000
units deployed by the eTec Project.”

From the report:

“The concentration of buying power associated with
fleet operators and fleet management companies represents
a significant opportunity to assist the early development
of the electric drive vehicle industry. Moreover,
fleets tend to possess a handful of important characteristics
that may make them more likely than typical
consumers to take on the potential risks of electric drive
ownership in anticipation of reaping financial benefits
down the road.”

The presentation describes BMW’s analysis methods and features results from the Mini E field trial.

Vehicle Specifications:

• Two Seater
• 35 kWh Lithium Ion Battery
• Range: 100 in Real World Conditions

User Testing:

• Test compares customer responses and impressions across three markets: Great Britain, United States, and Germany
• Combination of qualitative and quantitative analysis methods
• Methods: Online Travel Diary, Questionnaires, Interviews

Conclusions

• Range sufficient for most trips
• Reported range averaged between 70-120 miles
• Charging not a big issue, even without extensive network of EVSE

Restrictions/Barriers

• Lack of standardized vehicle inlet
• Very limited access to public charging
• Air cooled batteries
• Reduced cold weather performance
• No remote access to vehicle information
• Limited cargo and passenger capacity

Download it here.

Abstract:

The mass production of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) is expected to start in the coming years. Climate change, peak oil and the automotive and economic crisis have put a significant pressure on the current transportation regime. Increasing urbanisation, range and efficiency advantages of PEVs in city traffic and the problem of urban air pollution have moved cities into the focus of PEV dissemination. Three case studies were conducted in this research to analyse the functioning of PEV systems in cities. Different functions like knowledge development, market formation and resource mobilization are analysed and discussed. The main critical issues around PEVs like range, cost, and environmental performance are investigated in a city context, and corresponding recommendations for cities to become plug-in ready are outlined.

Executive Summary:

Commercially produced electric vehicles (EV) are a reality in Virginia today, and Virginia is well-positioned physically and economically to be a leader in electric vehicles. Embracing electric vehicle use in Virginia will assist statewide efforts to reduce vehicle emissions, increase energy independence, and generate positive economic development for the Commonwealth. This initial Virginia “electrification plan”…

• details how to overcome potential barriers associated with the adoption of plug-in vehicles and charging infrastructure specifically related to codes, standards and processes;
• outlines initial communication strategies to educate appropriate partners, stakeholders and the general public;
• illustrates the existing and potential incentives to encourage businesses and individuals to purchase plug-in vehicles; and
• outlines the issues and tasks necessary to the installation of charging infrastructure, from the technical to the managerial.

Virginia’s codes and standards are in a good position. This plan identifies best practices, including online access to information and rapid permitting processes enacted by some Virginia localities. Nothing in the statewide building code prevents or delays charger installations.

The reality of charging infrastructure, technical and managerial, is outlined at length in this document. The process of charging an electric vehicle can be as simple as plugging the vehicle into a 120 volt outlet; however, for faster charging, electrical upgrades may be needed.

The Virginia EV educational process will involve many partners, including regional and statewide organizations, Clean Cities, and the Commonwealth’s varied university and community college system. This plan outlines some initial educational strategies and processes and provides some base resources. Additional information can be found online at this centralized Virginia Electric Vehicle website: http://www.VirginiaEV.org/.

Several incentives have been identified that can accelerate electric vehicle adoption and position Virginia for advanced adoption of these vehicles. In addition to nonmonetary incentives, the addition of a $2,000 Virginia tax credit for electric vehicle purchase can put us in a competitive position with Maryland and other states offering such an incentive.
Additional policy suggestions and implications are included in the recommendations section.

In tracked alternate fuel vehicle fleets alone, there are 71 plug-in-hybrid or full electric vehicles on Virginia’s roads today. These are generally converted vehicles, light duty small trucks, and neighborhood electric vehicles. The upcoming months bring initial deployments and sales of full sized electric vehicles from several major automotive manufacturers, as well as additional offerings from niche producers.

These vehicles represent an attractive alternative to traditional vehicles powered by petroleum fuels. With lower fuel and operational costs as well as zero tailpipe emissions, electric vehicles can lead to cleaner air in our urban areas as well as allow us to use robust in-state coal and nuclear energy and allow for renewable fuel options such as solar, wind and biomass power.
In these challenging economic times, electric vehicles represent an economic opportunity for the Commonwealth. In addition to the strong penetration of existing energy jobs that exist throughout the state, in 2010, 84 new jobs and $23.5 million in new investment have been announced in the electric vehicle charger and battery component sectors in Virginia. With Virginia’s excellent business environment, the electric vehicle business sector can continue to grow and flourish with existing Virginia businesses. PRTM Management Consultants, an energy industry research group, has estimated that vehicle electrification could represent greater than $250 billion in economic development opportunities worldwide by 2020, taking into account growth in electricity generation and distribution, grid and infrastructure investments, batteries and other components, sales of vehicles, and associated advertising and marketing services. PRTM’s research also suggests that government and commercial fleets will be a leading sector for early adoption of electric vehicles.

Virginia’s economy is already benefitting from the electric vehicle value chain. Companies located in Virginia currently make batteries, battery components, motors, and charging stations. They design vehicles, deploy electric vehicles, and convert vehicles to plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles. Northern Virginia is connected within the 70-mile radius of the federally funded DC ChargePoint America charger deployment, and the Commonwealth is home to many early adoption electric vehicle enthusiasts. In central Virginia, Charlottesville is involved in a significant smart grid demonstration program and a vehicle conversion deployment program and joins Northern Virginia with a high number of early hybrid vehicle owners. Richmond has a large fleet presence and a local electric vehicle initiative. The Hampton Roads region includes large federal fleets in close proximity that are likely to benefit from enhanced vehicle electrification. Virginia fleets currently have numerous electric vehicles and there are several public and private charging stations available, including modern units and deployment units from the late 1990′s.

Virginia utilities have installed plugs into converted Prius vehicles, deployed plug-in bucket trucks, and have agreed to purchase and test Chevy Volt units when available. The Commonwealth has installed free access vehicle charging units at one rest area and hosts numerous electric vehicles in agency and university fleets. Virginia entities are researching vehicle conversions, assessing charging capacity, reviewing financial strategy, and considering roles in jump-starting vehicle adoption and infrastructure deployment to further benefit of our local economy.

Providing both financial and environmental benefits, vehicle electrification in Virginia can help state and local fleets comply with current and future clean air regulations. Vehicle electrification will be especially beneficial in Hampton Roads, Richmond, and Northern Virginia localities currently facing air attainment and health issues now and in the future.

In summary, Virginia is well-positioned for the arrival of electric vehicles and is making additional strides to embrace and expedite their adoption. Taking an active role in the promotion of electric vehicles at this crucial period of growth will allow the Commonwealth to secure the economic development opportunities that may otherwise flow to other regions.

See how Project Get Ready partners measured up.

Some cities in America have prepared for plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) for years, but the PEV transition will soon affect much of the U.S. relatively quickly. With the first wave of vehicles upon us (starting by the end of 2010), initial PEV fleets will hit specific areas where, for a number of reasons, readiness and appetite is highest.

The path of the subsequent nationwide rollout of PEVs will be driven by the “chicken-and-egg” dilemma of city readiness and charging infrastructure.

Luckily, pioneering cities can make the roadmap to PEV readiness much clearer and shorter for those who are less-prepared. It is not too late for newcomers to the game to prepare to join the next wave of PEVs by taking lessons from the leaders to more rapidly “get ready.”

In the report, “Electric Vehicles in America,” Roland Berger Strategy Consultants and Rocky Mountain Institute’s Project Get Ready identify which of America’s 50 largest metro areas are currently most prepared for PEVs, which are making progress to develop the necessary ecosystems in the near future, and which need to accelerate to accommodate the imminent launch of PEVs.

While RMI’s Project Get Ready has collaborated on EV readiness plans with over a dozen partner cities, the report expands exploration to provide a nationwide snapshot of readiness across America.

The study assesses the following key requirements for PEV readiness, including:

• Regulatory environment
• Infrastructure readiness
• Consumer readiness
• Operating environment

Although not all of these factors (local weather for instance) are directly under a city’s control, the report highlights the substantial opportunities that cities, states, the federal government, automakers, electric utilities and consumers can pursue to create a favorable PEV ecosystem in the near future.

Shared Learning for Nationwide Success

The report stresses the importance of planning and the benefits of shared learning across cities with varying levels of readiness.

Due to the work of pioneering cities (see how the PGR partner cities ranked), followers have a clearer, shorter path to readiness especially in the areas of infrastructure planning, regulatory alignment, and consumer awareness. Based on the lessons learned, late-adopting cities can develop good plans that enable maximum benefit while avoiding costly mistakes. Some have already made good progress and are aggressively closing the gap, while others will wait before committing to the PEV transition.

Read the full report to view full city rankings, and key enablers that cities can pursue to enable a functional PEV market in the future. (Please note: You will be redirected to rolandberger.com and asked to provide to access the report)

Download volume one here.

PHEV Impact on Nationwide Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Overview of Study and Results
This report describes the first detailed, nationwide analysis of greenhouse gas (GHG) impacts of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. The “well-to-wheels” analysis accounted for emissions from the generation of electricity to charge PHEV batteries and from the production, distribution and consumption of gasoline and diesel motor fuels.

Researchers used detailed models of the U.S. electric and transportation sectors and created a series of scenarios to examine assumed changes in both sectors over the 2010 to 2050 timeframe of the study. Three scenarios represent high, medium, and low levels of both CO2 and total GHG emissions intensity for the electric sector as determined by the mix of generating technologies and other factors. Three scenarios represent high, medium, and low penetration of PHEVs in the 2010 to 2050 timeframe.
From these two sets of scenarios emerge nine different outcomes spanning the potential longterm GHG emissions impacts of PHEVs, as shown in the following table. (see PDF)

Researchers drew the following conclusions from the modeling exercises:

Annual and cumulative GHG emissions are reduced significantly across each of the nine scenario combinations. Annual GHG emissions reductions were significant in every scenario combination of the study, reaching a maximum reduction of 612 million metric tons in 2050 (High PHEV fleet penetration, Low electric sector CO2 intensity case). Cumulative GHG emissions reductions from 2010 to 2050 can range from 3.4 to 10.3 billion metric tons. Each region of the country will yield reductions in GHG emissions. More detailed results are presented below and in Chapter 5 of this report.

Overview:

“How much lithium would be required if hybrids, then plug-in hybrids, and then
pure electric vehicles expanded their market share extremely rapidly? We
estimated an upper bound on the quantity that could be required by using four
promising lithium-ion battery chemistries. To evaluate the adequacy of future
supply, we compared total demand to (1) estimates of production and reserves
and (2) the quantity that could be recovered by recycling. “

Electrifying Results from UK Mini E Pioneers

(PresseBox) München, 14.09.2010, As the second half of the twelve month MINI E field trial begins this week, the outcome of interviews and objective data collected from the first three months, of the December to June 2010 phase of the trial has now been analysed. The key results show that MINI and the BMW Group are gleaning valuable learning that will help shape the specification and operating characteristics of its Megacity vehicle which will make its debut in 2013.

The key findings from the first six months of the UK field trial are as follows:

-MINI E usage differs only marginally from a control group of MINI Cooper and BMW 116i drivers in terms of average journey distance, daily mileage and frequency of use.

-Before the trials began, users expected limitations in terms of range and charging times. In practice these have only proved to be barriers in a very few specific cases.

-Users felt reassured that both the MINI E itself and the charging process are completely safe.

-There was a very strong feeling from both private and fleet users that renewable energy should play an important role in future electricity generation. There was also a strong feeling that the battery of an electric vehicle (EV) should be charged using renewables to optimise the ecological advantages of an EV.

-The BMW Group is trusted to provide a technically mature solution to the challenges presented by EVs.
-Users reported a need for more interior space for journeys requiring more passengers and more storage capacity.

-Users felt strongly that public charging facilities for EVs were desirable and even essential. However, at the same time, the majority claimed that they coped without public charging facilities.

-In summary, users liked MINI E’s lack of noise, the convenience of home charging, low off peak power charges, not having to go to a petrol station and queue, driving a zero emissions vehicle, MINI E’s acceleration characteristics and regenerative braking.

-Drawbacks include current mileage range for certain journeys, limited carrying capacity and suboptimal car performance during the extremely cold weather conditions in December 2009 and January 2010.

MINI E average trip distance mirrors that of cars in the same segment

The National Travel Survey reveals that the average single trip length for car users in the UK is 8.6 miles, a distance almost exactly matched by MINI E drivers at 8.5 miles. Using the same survey data, 90 per cent of all trips are 15 miles or under, while another eight per cent are between 20 and 35 mile. Only two per cent are above 35 miles. Using a control group of MINI Cooper and BMW 116i customers these statistics are reinforced, MINI Cooper drivers averaging 7.3 miles and 116i drivers only 6.8 miles. The conclusion to be drawn from this is that there are no objective limitations on average daily use for MINI E drivers.

The same conclusions can be drawn by analysing average daily distance driven. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) confirms that 22.8 miles is the average private daily mileage across the UK. For MINI Cooper and 116i it is 27.0 and 26.1 respectively while, again, MINI E experience slots right in the middle at 26.7 miles. The conclusion is that MINI E daily driving use matches cars in a similar segment almost exactly.

Reasons for non use

Naturally not all trips could be taken in the MINI E. Reasons quoted by users for not using their MINI E were for longer journeys (89 per cent said this had occurred for them) and limited space, either for carrying shopping or because they needed more than two seats. Lack of space was quoted by 67 per cent of users for not using MINI E on odd occasions. These are characteristics that the future Megacity vehicle will address.

Charged experiences

The process of charging MINI E from the charging box supplied and fitted at users’ homes was convenient and appreciated by the MINI E pioneers. On average the cars were charged every two to three days. Two thirds of users charged their car three times a week or less while only six per cent charged daily. It is clear that users quickly adapted to charging overnight when electricity costs are cheaper and it also suited the daily routine of the drivers.

When asked whether users saw a need for a public charging infrastructure 87.5 per cent agreed that it is necessary, with only 12.5 per cent seeing no need. However 75 per cent of all users also said they could use their MINI E without a comprehensive charging infrastructure.

In summary the home charging was seen as safe and easy to operate, users easily adapted to a charging routine and most charged their MINI E overnight. Actual charging times were seen as efficient with some users becoming so happy with it they found it more convenient than having to queue up at a petrol station. Participants would like a public charging system but did not need to rely on one.

Renewable energy

All users, both fleet and private, feel that renewable energy generation should play an important role in future electricity generation. There is a similar agreement from users that it is important to charge the MINI E batteries with renewable energy with 100 per cent of fleet users and 89 per cent of private drivers holding this opinion. However, only 22 per cent of private, and 72 per cent of fleet, drivers thought that EVs should be exclusively powered by renewable energy.

The $64 million question – would they buy one?

Would this early experience of MINI E encourage the pioneers to buy an electric vehicle? The initial conclusion from the first phase of the trial is a resounding, but qualified, ‘yes’. The MINI E drivers all appreciated the use of a zeroemissions car that removed emissions from their immediate environment, the reduced reliance on fossil fuels and the lower noise pollution inherent with an EV. They also appreciated the dynamic acceleration characteristics of MINI E and its regenerative braking performance.

There are, of course, barriers to a possible future purchase. Both the current driving range and the carrying capacity for passengers and cargo are viewed as limiting factors. Also, the suboptimal performance of the car in very cold weather needs improvement.

On balance, though, all were convinced about the viability of electric vehicles in an everyday UK road environment and to a man, and woman, all claimed that taking part in this study had increased their enthusiasm to buy an EV as well as reducing the time frame in which they plan to do so.

There is the small question of price as well. Like all drivers their purchase intentions are pricesensitive. However almost half of the users stated that they would pay one third more than a conventional MINI in order to benefit from the advantages of a more sustainable form of personal mobility. This implies a UK acceptable price of around £16,000. The strength of purchase intention would be increased with improvements to luggage and passenger space.

” The early learning from this first stage of the MINI E trials has given us very positive feedback and pointers as to where we will need to improve” explained Jochen Goller, Director of MINI UK. “One has to remember that MINI E, despite being very thoroughly engineered for its task, is in the end a modified existing production MINI Hatch. An EV designed from the ground up will be able to address some of the criticism on packaging and driving range. That is precisely the reason we are holding these trials.”

“We are very confident that the full 12 month trial under real road conditions with real people will help us greatly in producing an exciting and extremely efficient vehicle for the urban environments of the future” Goller continued. “We are truly grateful to the 80 pioneers who are helping to shape the future of the sustainable electric car. They are people who care about the future of our planet as much as they do about the mobility of its inhabitants” he concluded.

Iain Gray, Chief Executive of The Technology Strategy Board said,

“We created the Low Carbon Vehicle Demonstrator competition to act as a catalyst for industry, the public sector and academia to come together to create low emission vehicles and provide solutions to powering them. Many trials have already begun and it is planned that within the next six months around 340 vehicles will be on the UK’s roads. The majority of the vehicles are electric, with a small number being plugin petrol/electric hybrids. The information gained from this project will make an important contribution to the future plans of manufacturers and their partners, to develop low carbon vehicles for the mass market.”

The future is Megacity

BMW Group’s strategy to meet the needs for a sustainable future has four strands. Today, there are exceptionally efficient internal combustion engines, both diesel and petrolpowered, which are now being joined by hybrid technology taking an initial step towards the electrification of the driveline. The next step is a fully electric vehicle which will be available for customers in 2013. The Megacity Vehicle (MCV) combines all of BMW Group’s expertise in lightweight engineering, electric drive technology and dynamic driving characteristics in one unique, groundbreaking vehicle.

BMW engineers are developing a revolutionary LifeDrive concept that comprises a completely new vehicle architecture adapted to the demands of future sustainable mobility. The entire powertrain, the electric motor, power electronics and the battery system, are all being developed in house. LifeDrive consists of two horizontally separated, independent modules. The Drive module integrates the battery, drive system and structural and crash functions into a single construction within the chassis. Its partner, the Life module, consists primarily of a highstrength and extremely lightweight passenger cell made from Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastics (CFRP). Furthermore, the new vehicle architecture opens the door to totally new production processes which are both simpler and more flexible, and use less energy.

Carbon fibre bodywork not only provides immense strength but is also extremely light. Using this form of construction will reduce car weight by 250 to 350kgs which in turn will offset almost all the extra weight created by the batteries. The Megacity will be the first volumeproduced automobile to employ the significant benefits afforded by carbon technology.

The MINI E field trial is informing the design and development process for Megacity which will provide a practical, efficient and sustainable answer to the demand for zeroemissions urban mobility.

Notes to editors.

1.The MINI E is a two seat development of the familiar MINI Hatch. It is powered by a 204hp electric motor that also generates 220 Nm of torque. It is driven by battery power in the form of a sophisticated 35 kWh Lithium-Ion battery containing 5,088 cells. The battery can be charged by a special home charger supplied by consortium partner Scottish and Southern Energy. This enables a charge time of 2.4 hours at 50 amps. The MINI E has a top speed of 95mph and an official range of 149 miles (according to FTP72 standards), although a realistic range is 112miles.

1.The UK field trials mirror those taking place concurrently on the East and West coasts of the USA and in both Munich and Berlin. In the UK 40 examples of the MINI E have been operating for six months from late December 2009 until June 2010, 20 being private individuals and the balance with Corporate customers. The 40 MINI E Pioneers were selected from applicants in the South East of England. They are predominantly highlyeducated males aged 35 and over, earning above average income and with a high level of interest in ecological issues. A second group of 40 take the MINI Es over in September 2010 and will run the cars in normal road conditions until March 2011.

1.This research information covers only the first three months with the first tranche of MINI E Pioneers.

1.The UK Consortium supporting the MINI E trials are Scottish and Southern Energy who supply the home charging technology and renewable energy, Oxford Brookes University who are analysing data from users, SEEDA who provide political support and advice and, of course, the BMW Group which supplies the MINI E, selects users and manages driver education.

Über BMW Group

The BMW Group is one of the most successful manufacturers of automobiles and motorcycles in the world with its BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brands. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 24 production facilities in 13 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

The BMW Group achieved a global sales volume of approximately 1.29 million automobiles and over 87,000 motorcycles for the 2009 financial year. The pretax profit for 2009 was euro 413 million, revenues totalled euro 50.68 billion. At 31 December 2009, the company employed a global workforce of approximately 96,000 associates.

The success of the BMW Group has always been built on longterm thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy. As a result of its efforts, the BMW Group has been ranked industry leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes for the last five years.

• On average, MINI-E drivers traveled 8.5 miles per trip–almost identical to ICE average of 8.6

• Total daily travel was 27 miles–greater than the  UK ICE average of 22.8

• Lack of space in the MINI (much of which is taken up by battery) was cited as a drawback.

• Charging habits: drivers charged cars on average every 2-3 days–not every night.

• Infrastructure: 87.5% of drivers saw need for public charging infrastructure BUT 75% said they could use their MINI E without a network of stations.

Read more about the study, including the press release, here.

Check out their website here.

This Technical Report from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) was published in 2007 as an analysis of Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) charging impacts in Colorado.

Introduction:

The combination of high oil costs, concerns about oil security and availability, and air quality issues related to vehicle emissions are driving interest in “plug-in” hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). PHEVs are similar to conventional hybrid electric vehicles, but feature a larger battery and plug-in charger that allows electricity from the grid to replace a portion of the petroleum-fueled drive energy. PHEVs may derive a substantial fraction of their miles from grid-derived electricity, but without the range restrictions of pure battery electric vehicles.
As of early 2007, production of PHEVs is essentially limited to demonstration vehicles and prototypes. However, the technology has received considerable attention from the media, national security interests, environmental organizations, and the electric power industry. In 2006, the Bush administration announced the U.S. Advanced Energy Initiative, which includes the goal of developing a PHEV capable of traveling up to 40 miles on a single electric charge. For many U.S. drivers, a PHEV-40 could reduce average gasoline consumption by 50% or more.
The economic incentive for drivers to use electricity as fuel is the comparatively low cost of fuel. The electric equivalent of the “drive energy” in a gallon of gasoline delivering 25-30 miles in a typical midsized car is about 9-10 kWh, assuming a vehicle efficiency of 2.9 mile/kWh. The cost of this electricity using the U.S. average residential rate for 2005 (9.4 cents/kWh) is under $1, and could be even less when using off-peak power at preferential rates. This cost is directly comparable to the end-user cost of gasoline, which nationally averaged $2.60 for regular-unleaded in the 12-month period ending August 2006. Given these potential cost advantages, a study by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) found a significant potential market for PHEVs, depending on vehicle cost and the future cost of petroleum. Furthermore, several researchers have noted that by adding “vehicle-to-grid” (V2G) capability, where the vehicle can discharge as well as charge, PHEV owners may also receive substantial revenue by using the stored energy in their vehicles to provide high-value electric system services such as regulation, spinning reserve, and peaking capacity.

The use of PHEVs would represent a significant potential shift in the use of electricity and the operation of electric power systems. Electrification of the transportation sector could increase generation capacity and transmission and distribution (T&D) requirements, especially if vehicles are charged during periods of high demand. Other concerns include emissions impacts including regulated emissions (NOX and SO2) and currently unregulated greenhouse gas emissions. Utilities are interested in the net costs associated with this potential new load, including possible benefits of improved system utilization enabled by controlled PHEV charging.
This study is designed to evaluate several of these PHEV-charging impacts on utility system operations within the Xcel Energy Colorado service territory. We performed a series of simulations in which the expected electricity demand of a fleet of PHEVs was added to projected utility loads under a variety of charging scenarios. The simulations provide some basic insight into the potential grid impacts of PHEVs, focusing on the following issues:

• How do various PHEV-charging scenarios affect the total system load?
• What are the emissions associated with PHEV charging, and what are the combined emissions from both generator and vehicle? How do these emissions compare to a conventional vehicle?
• What are the marginal costs associated with PHEV charging?
• What are the quantifiable system benefits associated with controlled PHEV charging?

Hawaii is working to change from the most fossil fuel dependent state to the nation’s leading example of clean energy deployment. As part of this transition, Hawaii is committing to support electric vehicles.

Transportation Energy Diversification Project: Hawaii EV Ready Rebate and Grant Program

The purpose of the Transportation Energy Diversification Project is to transform Hawaii’s transportation sector to become less dependent on liquid petroleum fuels by accelerating the adoption of electric drive vehicles and related charging equipment in Hawaii. Only commercially available technologies are available for funding.

http://hawaii.gov/dbedt/info/energy/evrebatesgrants/index_html/document_view

Key Information for the Potential EV Driver

Utility EV Rate Plans

Charge Station Installation

Charge Station Permit

Utility EV Help

Contact:

Watch webcast here.

Download the pdf here.

Summary:

“Electric vehicles and electric vehicle charging stations are coming to Washington State. In 2009 the
Washington State Legislature recognized this as both an economic and environmental priority and with the
support of the Governor, enacted a new law designed to encourage electric vehicles.

To create a consistent regulatory framework that would help this industry grow across Washington State, the
legislature required the Puget Sound Regional Council and Department of Commerce to develop guidance
for local governments.

To meet this requirement, the Puget Sound Regional Council and Department of Commerce formed a
broad-based technical advisory committee made up of local governments, charging equipment vendors,
utilities, ports, state agencies, and consumer interests.

The state’s new electric vehicle law requires that all local governments in Washington State allow electric
vehicle charging stations in most of their zoning categories. Allowing charging stations creates the need to
address a number of issues beyond zoning. These include on-street and off-street signage, charging station design standards, parking enforcement, accessibility for all users, SEPA exemptions, and more. These are addressed in this document.

The guidance includes the following:

• A discussion of the context within which charging stations are provided (Introduction).
• A model ordinance (Section 1).
• Model development regulations and, for topicswhere regulations may not be required or standards do not yet exist, information that is provided as guidance (Section 2).
• A set of resource documents and glossary (Section 3).
• Under a separate cover, the guidance includes a set of appendices that include templates, checklists, and research findings. “

Read more here.

Minor Installation Label:

• Original minor label program was used by electrical contractors for installation of branch circuits up to 30 amps at 240 volts.
• EVSE installations require 40 amp 240 volt circuit
• Minor installation label will be extended to include EVSE installations in one or two family dwellings, in attached garages.
• 9 out of 10 installations will not be inspected under minor installation label

Also, download here a press release, which explains Oregon’s Building Code Division’s permitting process for home charging units.

Download the pdf here

Steps for setting up EV charging at condos, townhouses or apartments:

1. Tenant receives EV technical requirements from dealer and contracts building management
2. Building representative initiates installation process as a value-add, contacts tenant association if applicable
3. Tenant orders EV and notifies building representative to initiate installation process
4. Building rep. assesses external installation resources and potential contractors
5. Building rep. makes preliminary design and layout decisions with selected contractor
6. Contractor prepares estimate and layout site visit from utility planner
7. Utility planner reviews plans and issues recommendations if necessary
8. Contractor revises plans if necessary and initiates installation, including acquisition of permits
9. Contractor orders necessary equipment
10. Utility installs equipment as needed
11. Contractor installs EVSEs
12. Contractor contacts local building inspector for an inspection
13. Utility initiates service
14. Tenants begin charging

The Virginia Get Ready Roundtable gathered for an introductory meeting  on May 18, 2010 and met throughout the summer to establish a cooperative plan for deployment of electric  vehicles in Virginia. This plan and related educational information for the state are now published on the Virginia Clean Cities and partner sites as well as a new educational resource: http://www.virginiaev.org

Virginia drafted a plan to facilitate the roll-out of electric vehicles. This plan involved the input of nearly 100 individuals and dozens of relevant organizations. state and local government entities, fleets, universities, utilities, civic organizations, vehicle manufacturers, and businesses were represented.
EVs represent an economic opportunity. So far in 2010, 84 new jobs and $23.5 million in new investment have been announced in the electric charger and battery component sectors in Virginia.
Virginia Get Ready: Electric Vehicles Plan p. 59
The objectives of Virginia’s efforts are to establish Virginia as a leader in the adoption of electric vehicles in order to reduce vehicle emissions, increase energy independence, and generate positive economic development for the Commonwealth.

Key Information for the Potential EV Driver

Richmond is one of 19 cities chosen by Ford as an initial market for the new, all-electric Ford Focus. To be launched in late 2011, this vehicle will have a 100-mile range.

http://www.virginiaev.org is a great resource for Virginia EV drivers. The initial EV plan was launched in October 2010. Leadership is still working with local groups and the state team to enhance EV efforts statewide.

What should I do prior to purchasing a Plug-in Vehicle?
Work with an EV seller or EV charger provider, determine whether you want to install a Level 1 charger (less complicated installation but 8-14 hour charge time) or Level 2 charger (more complicated but 4-6 hour charge time). To save money on electrical rates while your electric vehicle charges, contact your utility company to determine what type of installation is required to set up best time-of use service. If the utility company indicates you need a second meter panel or a dual meter adapter to take advantage of lower electrical rates whiles your electric vehicle is charging, contact your city or county’s building division to determine whether the agency allows such installation before proceeding. Have a private electrician inspect your home to determine whether you have sufficient electrical capacity for the type of EV charger installation you desire (Level 1 or Level 2). Obtain a cost estimate for electrical upgrade if required as well for other installation work that may be needed.
What kind of permit do I need to install an EV charger?
You need an electrical permit.
Do I need to submit plans with my permit?
No plan is required for simple EV charger installations that will not require trenching. For projects that do require trenching, plans will be required.
How do I apply for a permit?
Submit an application to the Building Department that identifies the property, lists the name of any person who will work on the project, and describes the proposed work in detail.
If plans are required, submit three sets of plans along with the permit application showing the following:

• Location of service
• Amperage (size of service)
• Service entrance conductor size and material
• Insulation type of the service entrance conductor
• Size and type of grounding conductor
• Number of new circuits and their use (if applicable)
• Wire size and type of any new circuits.

Utility EV Rate Plans

The EV rate plan is currently working its way through the Virginia legislature:

Dominion Virginia Power has designed a pilot off-peak charging proposal.  This optional rate could promote grid-balancing and inexpensive nighttime charging:

Dominion Virginia Power Proposes Rate Options for Charging of Electric Vehicles

• Proposed rates would offer time-of-day pricing for electric vehicles
• Pricing structure would encourage off-peak charging
  • Whole House rate: Off-Peak (4.65 cents/kWh), Peak (12.8 cents/kWh)
  • EV Specific: Off Peak (4.4 cents kWh), Peak (16.5 cents/kWh)
• The proposal creates an opportunity to better understand EV energy usage

Charge Station Installation

Numerous installations are in progress from the Chargepoint America program.  Chargers are also in progress in Richmond.  Virginia’s public chargers are submitted in a timely manner to DOE’s tracking database.

Charge Station Permit

Rapid permit process is in place in several localities. Regulatory streamlining efforts are also in place in several cities.  Virginia Beach has a 2 minute permitting process.  Contact information for permit officials is collected and published at http://www.virginiaev.org

Utility EV Help

Virginia Get Ready Goals

Establish Virginia as a  leader in the adoption of the electric vehicles in order to reduce  vehicle emissions, increase energy independence, and generate positive  economic development for the Commonwealth. Present an  initial Virginia “electrification plan” detailing:

• How to overcome  potential barriers associated with the adoption of plug-in vehicles and  charging infrastructure specifically related to codes, standards and  processes
• A communication strategy to educate appropriate partners,  stakeholders and the general public
• The potential incentives (monetary,  nonmonetary, upfront and long-term) to encourage businesses and  individuals to purchase plug-in vehicles
• The issues and tasks  necessary to the installation of charging infrastructure, from the  technical to the managerial.

Virginia Utilities have installed and converted Prius vehicles, bucket trucks, and have agreed  to purchase test Chevy Volt units when available. The Commonwealth has installed free access vehicle charging units  at one rest area. Virginia entities are assessing charging capacity, investment needs, and roles in jumpstarting  vehicle adoption and infrastructure deployment.

Virginia companies make batteries, motors, charging stations, and  design and deploy electric vehicles and convert hybrid vehicles to plug-in  hybrid vehicles and battery electric vehicles. Northern Virginia is connected within the 70 mile radius of the  DC ChargePoint America deployment and early adoption vehicle enthusiasts. Charlottesville Virginia is involved in a robust smart grid and vehicle conversion deployment program and has a  high number of early Prius adoptions. Richmond Virginia has a large fleet presence and a local electric vehicle initiative. Hampton Roads includes large federal fleets in close proximity that are likely to  benefit from electric improvements. Virginia fleets currently have 85 electric vehicles and there are numerous charging stations available, including modern units and EV1  deployment units from the late 1990′s.

State and local government entities, fleets, universities, utilities, civic organizations, vehicle manufacturers, and businesses are represented and stakeholder numbers are growing in the Virginia electrification effort.

Government representation includes the Virginia Secretary of Transportation, the state Department of Mines  Minerals and Energy, the Department of General Services, the Virginia Department  of Transportation, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, the Motor Vehicle Dealer Board, the US Department of Energy and Clean Cities program, Virginia Clean Cities,  Fairfax Virginia, Arlington Virginia, Richmond Virginia, Henrico Virginia,  Chesterfield Virginia, James Madison University, and the University of Virginia.

Utility representation includes Dominion Power and Old Dominion Electric Cooperative. Civic  involvement includes Electric Vehicle Association of Washington DC, Richmond STIR, the Virginia Automobile Association, and  Virginia Clean Cities. Business representation includes Nissan, Ford, Smith Electric Vehicles, the  Advanced Vehicle Research Center, Richmond Segway, Evatran, Plugless Power, Aker  Wade, Kollmorgen, Coulomb, and Encell.

Based  on likely adoption predictions, infrastructure and vehicle efforts will be initially targeted for the specific regions of  Northern Virginia, Charlottesville, Richmond, and Hampton Roads.

This plan was refined over the summer of 2010 and presented to public and  private stakeholders in October 2010 at the Commonwealth of Virginia Energy Symposium. The Virginia effort was based on the four working groups of the neighboring efforts in  Raleigh, North Carolina. The Virginia Get Ready Roundtable subcommittee groups included : 1) Standards and  Readiness, 2) Education and Outreach, 3) Incentives, and 4) Sites and Installation.

The Regional Champion for the Virginia effort was Virginia Clean Cities.

News & Additional Resources

Vehicle fleet conversions:

Demonstration vehicles are on the ground in Charlottesville.  A company in Danville adds batteries to Prius vehicles, including several now in use in Virginia fleets.

http://www.virginiaev.org

Virginia EV Plan  <http://www.virginiaev.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/EV-VGR-FINAL-October-13-2010.pdf>

Find charging stations near you

Gain a better understanding of federal and local incentives

The Virginia Get Ready planning process included a wide review of potential incentives. This review rated and considered incentives based on feasibility and impact. A listing below of existing incentives illustrates the Commonwealth’s existing emphasis on electric vehicles. Several additional incentives are working through the legislature now.

• Federal Tax Credit of $7,500 for new electric vehicle. This existing IRS tax credit allows vehicle dealers to take the tax credit in the event of sales to nonprofit or untaxed government agencies.
• Through December 31, 2011, qualified plug-in electric vehicle conversions are also eligible for a tax credit for 10% of the conversion cost, not to exceed $4,000. Additionally, a tax credit of up to 10% of the cost of qualified low-speed electric vehicles, electric motorcycles, and three-wheeled electric vehicles, not to exceed $2,500.
• There was a 50% federal tax credit up to $50,000 for installing alternate fuel infrastructure through the end of 2010.
• Access to HOV lanes without passenger restrictions. The Virginia Clean Special Fuel Vehicle Plate should be updated to explicitly allow new electric vehicles. Due to the numerous plate designs, it may be worthwhile to pursue a similarly designed electric vehicle plate to accomplish this task.
• Complimentary charging. Because vehicles are unlikely to stick around at a retail or government facility, some businesses and some government facilities offer free charging to visitors or customers.
• Special EV Parking Areas. Adding special parking such as charger only, or clean fuel vehicle only parking in private, public, and government facilities can provide an easy incentive. Examples of this are Virginia’s I-64 New Kent westbound exit signage as well as Raytheon’s offices and several Best Buy locations in the Commonwealth. This parking signage also provides builders with green building credits.
• For financial incentives, it would be advisable to explicitly ensure that utilities, non-profits, and government entities are entitled to something equivalent to tax credits in order to promote realistic early adoption. This would be similar to the federal tax credit flexibility that allows dealers to collect tax credits on behalf of tax free entities.

Key Findings:

• Voters See Electric Cars As A Critical, Transformative Step Forward
• Americans Believe Electric Cars Will Reduce Pollution And Dependence On Foreign Oil, While Creating Jobs
• Voters Support A Proposal To Electrify Transportation With Support Increasing As They Learn More
• Voters Overwhelmingly Prefer A Candidate Who Supports The Proposal And Ascribe A Range Of Positive Attributes To Them
• The Most Compelling Arguments Focus On Reducing Air Pollution & Reliance On Middle East Oil, As Well As On Keeping Jobs From Going To China
• Interfering With The Free Market And Increased Spending Are The Most Persuasive Opposition Messages, But Less Compelling Than Arguments In Favor

A recent conducted poll by the Electrification Coalition shows strong support for electric vehicles and legislation that will facilitate their deployment. Read more here.

The Electrification Coalition has created a presentation, which covers the results of the poll. You can find that in our resources page or download the pdf here.

Get Ready Tampa Bay will help identify potential challenges and develop solutions to make this goal a reality. The use of electric transportation will reduce our regions dependence on foreign oil, improve air quality, and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Key Information for the Potential EV Driver

Utility EV Rate Plans

Charge Station Installation

Charge Station Permit

Utility EV Help

Get Ready Tampa Bay’s charter (pdf)

For more information, contact Avera Wynn at avera@tbrpc.org

Find charging stations near you!

Gain a better understanding of incentives – federal and local

May 13, 2010

Attendees:

McCaffrey, Ryan – AmeriCenters

Flavin, Andy – Dominion

Patterson, Dave – Mitsubishi

Wynne, Avera – Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council

Kawai, Hiroko – Rocky Mountain Institute

Crotty, Fran – State of Minnesota

Schey, Stephen – ETEC

Dessanti, Daniel – National Grid

Oney, Emory – EDTA

Del Monaco, John – Public Service Enterprise Group

Castro, Joe – City of Boulder

Davis, Peter – City of Austin

Sharp, Korin – DTE

Groll, Stephanie – City of Cambridge, MA

James, Art – Oregon Department of Transportation

Parker, John – Get Ready Central Florida

Gilbert, Marty – Walmart

Rosinski, Bob – EV Charge America

Daniels, Nelson – City of Raleigh, NC

Gilbert, Kelly – Kansas City Metropolitan Energy Center

Kramer, Felix – CalCars

Dahlberg, Al – Brown University

Fernandes, John – Constellation Energy

Detjen, Chris – NextEnergy

Scott, Paul – Plug In America

Penney, Terry – NREL

Hamman, Jeff – Portland General Electric

Schewel, Laura – US Berkeley

Barghout, Jeff – Advanced Energy

Gabel, Dan – EDTA

Bjork, Thor – Xcel

Clapper, Mark – General Electric

Sikes, Dean – Cleco Power

Waters, Michael – Progress Energy

MacArthur, John – Portland State University

Echols, Ben – Georgia Power Company

Gale, Allan – Ford

Coley, Bryan – Georgia Power Company

Markel, Tony – NREL

Wilson, Zach – CM2 Limited

Potts, Sarah – Clinton Foundation

RMI: Matt Mattila, Tripp Hyde, Hiroko Kawai



===Agenda overview and Updates (Matt Mattila)===

Kansas City and Vancouver, CANADA signed MOU for PGR.

EDTA and other NGOs: RMI is coordinating efforts among NGOs so that Cities don’t get inundated by different NGO’s approaching with similar topics.

A heads up on Plug-in 2010 Conference in July

PGR may have an informal lunchtime meeting, please let us know if you are interested



===Main Discussion==

Garage Orphans

ETEC- potential for charging valet and more workplace charging

Level III Charging: Does it help accelerate the EV market penetration?

ETEC- rolling out ~1 Level III for every 30 Level II and running evaluations on usage

[Dave Patterson: Mitsubishi Motors - david.patterson@na.mitsubishi-motors.com ]

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) and Mitsubishi Motor, Nissan are working together to address the issue of “garage orphans”.  Most people in Japan don’t have garage to install charging device.  TEPCO and Mitsubishi Motors are preparing “fast” charging stations at LAWSON convenience store locations, apartment complex valet services, Mitsubishi car dealership locations, and the Japanese government also is trying to help install charging stations.

186 Stations will be built within the Tokyo-Kanagawa area.

U.S.-Japan Joint Program to develop charging stations is work-in-progress.

GE – current ratio for Level III to Level II is low- no current US standard for Level III

ETEC to provide Level III charging stations in partner cities

Will collect and share data

Who owns charging stations?

[Minnesota]

Initially city-owned, then, hoping that private sector will own for profit making opportunities.

RI – initial ~50 stations owned by private entities, some discussions/interest from municipality and utilities for future options

NC – currently costs covered by entity owning it, but some may rate base a portion of it which affects all rate payers

Houston – currently all stations are on Houston property or right of way. City does not want to be in charging station “business”. Hope to see private enterprises and utilities join in soon

In Amsterdam the 100 stations are operated by the local utility but owned by the city

[Steve Schey, ETEC]

Charging stations to proliferate to generate revenues for business owners.  Currently tasked to test out revenue generating options.

Quick charging—does it potentially deteriorate batteries?

[Dave Patterson, Mitsubishi Motors]

No, it won’t.  Intelligence on the vehicle will monitor and regulate to ensure the battery’s longevity.

• There are two sides of “Intelligence” to monitor: battery management system and the grid monitoring.

• SAE Evaluating the charging standards for the U.S. market.  CHΛdeMO[1] (Charging station standards developed by Japanese automakers and TEPCO)[2]

(moderator’s note) Studies are being conducted and anecdotal evidence suggests no significant reduction in battery longevity based on limited V2G testing http://www.magicconsortium.org/

Where does intelligence live?

EVSE providers prefer it to be in the station because it would be easier to meter/monitor

Utility Waiting Period- not accurate and unlikely to be enforceable if it were accurate

(moderator’s note)- question stemmed from an article stating a utility executive claimed there will be a waiting period

[Kelly Gilbert, Kansas City]

Q: Battery warranty: Compatible with State’s inspection safety regulations?

[Dave Patterson, Mitsubishi]

A: 24,000 miles/2 year warranty is set by the Federal gov.

Kelly to look into more detailed information about this topic.

Signage to identify EV Charging, EV Parking,

Arizona Legislature statute for EV parking enforcement (http://www.azleg.state.az.us/FormatDocument.asp?inDoc=/ars/28/00876.htm&Title=28&DocType=ARS)

Oregon

• ICE vehicles to be out of EV Spot
• To guide EV drivers to identify where EV charging is available.
• Additional signage examples from Cambridge, MA
• Amsterdam will tow diesel vehicles parked in EV spaces
• For some cities enforcement depends on who has jurisdiction over spaces (public vs private)

[2] Nissan, Mitsubishi, Subaru and TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company) developed the standards for LEVEL III Charging Stations for EV.

Rocky Mountain Institute’s Project Get Ready Adds Two New Cities: Kansas City and Tampa Bay!

Initiative gains momentum as diverse communities bring new challenges and opportunities for widespread electric vehicle adoption

05.13.2010 – Snowmass, CO – Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) today announced the addition of two metropolitan areas—Kansas City and Tampa Bay—to Project Get Ready, a national non-profit initiative helping cities prepare for plug-in electric vehicles (EVs).

Kansas City and Tampa Bay represent a growing number of North American metropolitan areas that are collaborating through Project Get Ready (PGR) to share lessons-learned and best practices for EV readiness. They also reveal a promising trend in the increasing geographic diversity of cities that aim to be leaders in the shift to low-carbon transportation.

“Tampa Bay and Kansas City are significant additions to PGR because along with partners like Houston, Raleigh, and Indianapolis, they are debunking the myth that EVs will be ushered in only by west coast cities that are synonymous with the green movement, like San Francisco or Portland,” commented Matt Mattila, RMI transportation consultant and PGR project manager.

While dense city centers have been the focus of many EV rollout efforts and studies, Project Get Ready officials point out that these accomplishments, while important, are not sufficient.

Planning and execution in Kansas City and Tampa Bay (which includes not only EV integration but also mass transit improvements) will have broad implications for transportation planning for all Project Get Ready partners, and other cities pursuing EV initiatives because they face challenges that are familiar to a large proportion of metropolitan areas in North America.

“While they acknowledge that public transportation is important, the car is, and will likely remain the predominant transportation option for commuters in these areas,” said Mattila. “They have been extremely proactive because they see the need to provide their community with cleaner transportation and energy options, without disrupting their lives. Rather than asking people to make sacrifices, they are offering a better option—the freedom of a personal car without the oil consumption, noise, and emissions of a traditional vehicle.”

Given the high reliance on the automobile, a conversion to EVs in these areas may generate larger societal benefits than technology adoption in areas with lower car ownership, more access to transit, and fewer vehicle miles traveled. The two large metro areas both have populations of more than two million but less than half the population density of a city in the Northeast. According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Tampa and Kansas City rank 69th and 71st, respectively, on transit trips per capita. It’s no surprise they have relatively high car ownership and freeway miles traveled.

The leaders in these regions have decided to challenge the notion that lots of cars and miles traveled equates to foreign oil and highway emissions.

“As regional planners, we continually ask ourselves what opportunities exist to reduce our dependence on oil and fossil fuels,” said Avera Wynne, planning director of the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council. “Project Get Ready gives us a way to work towards that goal. People are biting off different pieces of the apple at different times, and this gives cities with unique regional challenges a way to learn from cities that have already built a framework for their energy policy.”

Tampa Bay in particular will also serve as a case study for many of the challenges associated with regional EV charging and range anxiety. According to Wynne, four area utilities are serving as partners on the project.

“The number of utilities involved, and opportunities for coordination make this region an interesting example that can help our other cities,” said Mattila. “A major challenge is the difficulty associated with the management and communication needed with a utility and vehicle charging. What if you work in one utility district, but live in another? Where would your bill come from? Do they all offer the same special EV rates? Working with cities that have multiple utilities can really drive forward innovative and replicable programs.”

Get Ready Tampa Bay will have a public outreach event on June 22nd at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

For more information on PGR and Kansas City, visit www.marc.org/newsreleases/marc050610.htm.

For more information on Get Ready Tampa Bay, visit http://getreadytampabay.org/.

The Greater Kansas City Plug-In Readiness Task Force has been formed to drive the adoption of plug-in vehicles in the Greater Kansas City Area and is sponsored by the Mid-America Regional Council and the KC Regional Clean Cities Coalition. The goal is to have a regional plan to help get the metro area ready for plug in vehicles. These efforts will make a difference in the region’s ability to secure the economic and environmental benefits of plug-in vehicles.

Key Information for the Potential EV Driver

Utility EV Rate Plans

Charge Station Installation

Charge Station Permit

Utility EV Help

Update: September 17, 2010

Progress over the summer:

• We have focused on narrowing the scope of our planning activities to the most important items that we can accomplish with the resources we have.
• Each subteam has created a list of their top objectives and associated actions to be accomplished.
• We are using resources from other plug-in readiness activities across the country as they become available. For example, Puget Sound has created a document summarizing many of their plug-in readiness learnings.  http://www.psrc.org/transportation/ev/model-guidance/
• The October Steering Committee meeting will primarily be a workshop, where we will marry and prioritize objectives and actions from each subteam.
• Work is progressing on a letter seeking support for our efforts from environmental and business leaders in our communities.
• The subteams are always interested in accepting help furthering their objectives. Please respond to this message if you would like to volunteer for one of the teams.

Next Steering Committee Meeting (open to Task Force members):

• Friday Oct 1, 1pm, at the Enterprise Center of Johnson County at 87th and Bluejacket.
• This meeting will be a workshop where we:  focus on knitting together action plans from all subteams to create comprehensive action plan, prioritize actions for all groups, create urgency with highest priority actions, and recommend achievable timeline.

Website:   http://kcenergy.org/pluginreadykc.aspx

Other Events that are coming up (with presentation by KC Task Force member):

• Sept. 19th           EV Readiness Panel, All Souls Forum
• Sept. 23rd           APWA Webinar on EV readiness, national audience (See: http://www.apwa.net/events/eventdetail.asp?ID=5230)
• Oct. 15th             EV Readiness Seminar at Clean Transportation Expo, Metropolitan Community College – Longview 8am-4pm.

Update: July 9, 2010

Minutes from Steering Committee and Subteam meetings:

What we’ve accomplished together so far:

• We’ve defined our mission, approach, and structure, and have become a Project Get Ready member.
• We’ve created a set of charters and objectives.
• We’ve held a broader stakeholder conference that confirmed the direction we are on and provided additional suggestions.
• Subteams are setting tasks and outlining plans

Our next steps:

• Please see the attached minutes from June and July.
• It’s now time to identify the most important objectives and flesh out the plans for each.
• It’s also time to create an achievable timeline.
• Now comes the hard work. There is more work identified in the subteams plans than we have resources to accomplish. We therefore must select the most important objectives, identify the work necessary to accomplish those objectives, and must create an achievable schedule that balances time, needs, and resources.
• The Steering Committee is asking each subteam to identify the critical objectives that must be met and create detailed task level plans to achieve those objectives.
• As part of this effort, we are asking each subteam to carefully review Project Get Ready’s Menu of Actions to make sure we have all the “must-have” actions covered.
• The steering committee will review these plans at the August 6^th and Sept 3^rd Steering Committee meetings, which are open meetings.
• At that time we will review the objectives/task plans and our available resources, and propose an achievable schedule.
• We are working to identify funding and resources necessary to support this effort

Summary of the July 9^th Steering Committee Meeting:

• We reviewed the objectives and work plans for most of the subteams.   A couple subteams had time constraints, which didn’t allow them to bring prioritized objectives.
• We determined that there is more work identified in the subteams plans than we have resources to accomplish. We therefore must select the most important objectives, identify the work necessary to accomplish those objectives, and must create an achievable schedule that balances time, needs, and resources.
• This task force can be most effective when established as the primary community voice for plug in readiness in the area. To this end, a letter will be drafted that can be presented to various community leaders seeking their endorsement.
• Grants will be sought to provide funding for both planning work and implementation work.
• Attendees:

• Kelly Gilbert – Metropolitan Energy Center
• Tim Gelvin – Johnson County Community College
• Larry Kinder – LilyPad EV
• Mark Dehner – KD Equities
• Roland Maliwat – KCP&L
• Ron Achelpohl – MARC

Action Items for Subteams:

• Leads, please convene your subteam as necessary to prepare for the next steering committee meeting. Let us know if other time commitments are causing conflicts.
• Each subteam needs to select only their critical objectives necessary for plug-in readiness and create work plans necessary to achieve those objectives.
• Please send this to the steering committee by Aug 4, if complete, and September 1, at the latest. We will review those completed by Aug 4 at the Aug 6 steering committee meeting and those completed by Sept 1 at the Sept 3 meeting.

Next Steering Committee Meetings (open to Task Force):

• First Fridays at 1 p.m. at KCPL Energy Center, 1200 Main, KCMO

• Aug 6
• Sept 3
• Oct 1

• Tentative Agenda, Aug 6:

• Subteam Status Update
• Review critical objectives and work plan
• Identify resources available
• Identify gaps and potential resources to fill the gaps
• Create achievable schedule

Website:   http://www.kcenergy.org/transp-PlugInTaskForce.html

Contacts
Kelly Gilbert
Kansas City Regional Clean Cities Coalition
Metropolitan Energy Center
(816) 561-1625
kgilbert@kcenergy.org

Ron Achelpohl
Assistant Director of Transportation
Mid-America Regional Council
(816) 701-8327

Find charging stations near you!

Gain a better understanding of incentives – federal and local

Read more and download the study here.

Additionally, this RFI can be used as a template for any region to submit an RFI to manufacturers for their own local initiatives.

Abstract: Request for Information specific to technical information on electric vehicle supply equipment for electric vehicles.

Whether or not you agree with that prediction, one thing seems clear: American consumers are far less dubious of electric vehicles than they have been made out to be. Still, a number of educational barriers may stand in the way of widespread adoption. Read more about those, and the rest of the survey’s findings here.

The Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards are in the Code of Federal Regulations. Go to http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/cfr-table-search.html

Scroll down to title 49, Transportation and select the Oct 2008 volume.

Then select the 500 – 599 subpart, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and then select part 571.

FMVSS 305 is the standard specific to shock prevention, battery retention and electrolyte spillage. It references some of the other standards as well.

NHTSA was petitioned by the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers to amend this standard to accommodate fuel cell vehicles, and you can read about that in the docket. Some of these changes would also effect battery EV’s. Go to www.regulations.gov and in the box, “Enter a Key word or ID”, type in NHTSA-2007-28517. Then click on “open docket folder”. The notice of proposed rulemaking is on page 3. Go to this docket to see the progress of this rulemaking action.

The EMS division worked several years ago on some first responder training with DOE, but if so the materials would be very old. We generally just ask the manufacturers for their guides. They are available at http://www.extrication.com/ERG.htm.

NHTSA crash tests online at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/portal/site/nhtsa/menuitem.8027fe7cfb6e727568d07a30343c44cc/.

If for any reason you want to look up crash test results/video/reports on any hybrids you can find them there. We have some very old reports on EV’s, for example, the EV1 is test 2898. The easiest way to query the database is “Query by vehicle parameters such as make, model, and year.”

Also, we received this additional safety information from NREL…

Seems like the details of safety would have to be addressed by the OEMs – for example, Prius has emergency response guidelines: https://techinfo.toyota.com/techInfoPortal/staticcontent/en/techinfo/html/prelogin/docs/2ndprius.pdf

Emergency Response Guides for Hybrid Vehicles: http://www.ct.gov/cfpc/cwp/view.asp?Q=445610&A=832&cfpcPNavCtr=|30654|

GM Emergency Responder Hybrid Resources: http://www.extrication.com/ERG.htm#GM_Emergency_Responder_Hybrid_Resources

GM probably doesn’t have any EV emergency response manuals out yet but there are things like this: http://gm-volt.com/2009/08/25/chevy-volt-underwater-testing/

Introduction

“The arrival of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) to the North American light vehicle market marks the first time since the earliest days of the automotive industry that electricity could be considered a major transportation fuel. The introduction of PEVs also marks a major point of departure for the management of the North American electricity grid with the introduction of a significant new charging load.

While PEVs present a significant new load, they also represent an opportunity to develop existing and potentially new products and services for grid management. In the near term, managed charging of PEVs, coordinated among megawatts of charging load, could help provide ancillary services or emergency reliability services. By using the PEVs’ capability to support two-way power transfers (charging and discharging to the grid), PEVs will serve as a large distributed energy source.”

Introduction

The Project Get Ready team attended the recent Globe 2010 Conference, in Vancouver and participated in the Auto Future Tech discussion.

The topics of this panel included:
• Case studies of municipalities getting ready infrastructure-wise
• EV market readiness.
• Tax incentives
• “Timing”
• Life cycle analysis
• Comparing extraction of lithium ion from Bolivia to oil from Middle East.

Additional conferences are coming up as well: the Electrification Coalition meeting in Washington, D.C., “Alternative Fuels and Vehicles” on May 9-12 and “Business of Plugging In” October 12 – 14, 2010.

Website Updates

We have updated the PGR website. Our Total Cost of Ownership calculator has been improved to include state-specific electricity and fuel prices. The user can also input 2008 or 2009 prices, or use current prices

The Oregon EV guidelines have been briefly taken off the website, but they will be back on when the final and approved versions are completed.

We recently added Federal Highway signage to the website, as well as a new study by Friends of the Earth. This study surveys infrastructure and permitting guidelines in bay area of California.

New Technical Advisers
• Michael Mahan – Product Manager at GE industrial services; Michael works on electrical distribution-switchboards, panels, etc. He’s signing on to help answer any infrastructure questions
• Intertek – National Standards Testing Lab
• Possible future adviser: eTech

Other Notes

Jeff at Advanced Energy is working with PGR to create a Request For Information (RFI) for stakeholders to understand options, technology, and pricing for EVSE.

Charging Station Locator
• National Renewable Energy Laboratories has an Alternative Fueling Station Locator.
• Any updates to the site will be shared with PGR partners
• NREL has a subcontractor that takes care of researching new stations and adds new ones to database once a month.

Cities Updates

Denver: Matthew Marshall
• A parking enforcement vehicle is being converted to full battery electric.
• This should be a good EV application because of slow stop and go, few miles.
• In process of getting a charging station installed from Go-smart, in one of the parking garages. Conduit and data line are installed.
• Pleased to see KB Homes will be offering pre-wiring for EV charging. They are doing 11 different developments in Denver.
• 53 Tesla owners in Denver/Boulder Area.
• PGR Note: Denver did a great job in bringing together different actors in the space. Local charging station providers were in the area. Some of their first successes have been in the purchase of local vehicles and stations. Some truth behind economic development argument.

Rhode Island: Al Dahlberg
• Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) students are working on designing manual for EVSE.
• Goal is to have 25-30 EV installations by 2011.
• Area has been receptive.
• Exploring incentives in tax credits and PR
• Moving forward on guide and assembling information for companies interested installing charging stations. Release date will likely be in June.

Raleigh: Rob Underhill and Jeff Barghout (Advanced Energy)
• Continuing contractor and inspector workshops.
• With regard to sites, we have been solidifying site selection criteria.
• Looking at Macro scale: which properties; Micro: where on the property.
• Outreach activities: working on plans to encourage commitments.
• Outlining several large workshops across the state.
• Raleigh’s Earth Day celebration is coming up. Planning on integrating EVs.
• Moving closer towards having Clean Cities grant available.
• Advanced Energy: “We’re expecting to help install 80 charging stations in area for clean cities initiative.“; This has expanded into other cities in Triangle area. Exciting to work with cities on road mapping; We’re putting together RFI for charging infrastructure – nearly 20 different manufacturers. Information that we received back, we will make publicly available to all PGR teams; Expecting everything to come in by may 10th (target), but will continue to post if more come on; Cities need to have this information as they make EVSE choices.

Central Florida: John Parker
• Streamlining Permit process.
• Actively working with building inspectors to get up to speed.
• Hoping to mimic Houston/Raleigh models.
• Converting Hybrids to Plug in Hybrids. These demonstration vehicles will go to hotels, theme parks and area businesses to promote EV transportation.
• Grant funds from DOE to make a solar charging station. There’s currently one at the University of Central Florida and Orlando Utilities Commission. Progress Energy has a grid connected charging station.
• Working with “SunRail” planners who are putting in train stations throughout metropolitan Orlando. Planning charging infrastructure so commuters can park and charge.
• PGR: We’d love to hear more about the economics of solar charging and train station progress, challenges.

Kansas City: Kelly Gilbert
• Launched the Plug in Readiness initiative Jan.
• Holding first stakeholder conference April 23rd.
• After strategy is completed in January, implementation process begins.

Toronto: Ban Marans
• Presented at Globe 2010.
• Conference highlighted municipalities leading the way.
• Toronto has been active in EV working group. Addressing infrastructure at plug level and utility level.
• Toronto is tweaking Total Cost of Ownership calculator with Canadian data.
• Looking at policy level: right of ways, street charging, waterways.
• Gaining traction with OEMs. Toyota plug in hybrid is going to be tested in Toronto.
• Hoping to use smaller pilots for informing process for EV300 initiative.
• Toronto Airport Authority has 180 charging spots. Looking to add to their highway ready vehicle fleet.
• Looking to form relationships with other munis around Toronto.
• Exploring opportunities to develop a Canadian PGR-type network.
• Issues with selling electricity, access to electricity. Electricity reseller or service provider – these are questions Toronto is interested in.
• PGR: we’ve been working with charging station providers to see what regs. are in place. We can pull together best practices. In U.S., individual PUCs control certain areas, but we will dive deeper into emerging issues in Canada.
• GE: One of the features designed into charging stations is ability to do remote diagnostics of station and chargers themselves. Let people know when unit needs to be repaired.
• CT: Resale issues around private parking management companies. There is a formation within National Parking Association trying to create a LEED “tent”. EV Charging is an element of this. They don’t see it as a resale or significant revenue enhancement. They see it as a way to move their parking projects through LEED certification process quicker. They don’t see significant increase in kilowatts. LEED is a big incentive. Recently in Florida, saw a company that was looking at reselling in a highrise in Pompano Beach.

Tampa Bay: Avera Wynne, Greg Miller
• 4 counties: Tampa, St. Pete, Clear Water
• Three large utilities: Progress, Florida power and light, Tampa Electric
• Meeting with Hillsboro County to start talking about education of electricians and establishing curricula for educating them.
• We have a lot of KB Homes in our region, so we’ll be looking into them for support.
• Suburban homes are good because 80% of charging will be done at home. Production homes players will be huge players.
• Planning a big role out event. Orlando helped a lot in getting started.
• Light rail program underway – TBRTA. Connecting regions- “super region”
• Airports and rail stations are both interested in doing charging stations.
• Light rail people and airports are interested in serving rental car market.

General Discussion

Paul Scott (Plug-In America) asked Orlando about charging levels for long term parking, noting that it might be a good cost saving measure to use level 1. Orlando, as of yet, hasn’t considered charge level. Focus has been on conduit and wiring.

DMV Registration Issues
• No box to indicate EV.
• PGR: we’re going to try to answer this state by state. As each of you has experiences or best practices, please let us know. We’ll add to website and update going forward.

Signage
• Standardization is important. We have put some examples online. Opened design contest.
• Success stories in making interesting signage

EV Maintenance
• Partners have found difficulty in servicing hybrids. Vehicles like the Prius often have to go in dealership because no one is trained to do work.
• How wills this affect EVs?
• Are EV manufacturers planning on doing training programs for mechanics?
• PGR: There are a few such programs through tech-schools and associations. We’ll publicize this info and reach out to OEMs.

Final note

If there are any additional questions, don’t hesitate to ask the PGR team. Our Technical Advisers are a valuable resource and are eager to share their knowledge with you.

Finally, if you find any interesting reports or resources, feel free to forward them to us. We’ll make sure they go on the website and share them with the rest of the partners.

In addition, Plug In America has created a great, easy-to-read, incentive chart.

1. Adopt specific permitting policy for EV chargers and train staff
2. Ensure public access to comprehensive EV-related information
   1. Post EV charger specific website pages
   2. Develop a comprehensive EV charger guide
3. Streamline permit access
   1. Reduce the number of government office visits
   2. Reduce the number of home visits
      1. Allow self-certification for simple installations
      2. Condense compliance review inspections for more complicated installations
   3. Establish set fees for simple installations
   4. Process EV charger permits on a priority basis
   5. Discontinue plan requirements for simple installations
   6. Establish 24-hour inspections request systems
4. Other policies to reduce the cost of electric charger installations
   1. Require new construction to include EV chargers, or at minimum wiring components for later EV charger installation

Additionally, there is specific information on permitting in many of the Bay Area cities, a flowchart for common residential installations, and a sample EV charger installation guide.

Amsterdam has been making strides with EV readiness, especially through its partnership with Coulomb Technologies.

Amsterdam is currently working to put together a broader EV initiative and will be installing more charging stations. They have also developed a recognizable electric vehicle logo. There is more information on the initiative’s website.

Key Information for the Potential EV Driver

Utility EV Rate Plans

Charge Station Installation

Charge Station Permit

Utility EV Help

Southern California, especially around the LA area, has a long history with electric vehicles. Major utilities, such as San Diego Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison, provide time-of-use programs to residential customers which help with off-peak charging. Additionally, several plug-in friendly organizations, such as Plug-In Ameria, are based here. Also, the LA area has several EV manufacturers, such as Think North America.

LA itself is part of California’s EV readiness plan and has recently announced its own Southern California Electric Vehicle Readiness Plan.

Key Information for the Potential EV Driver

Utility EV Rate Plans

Southern California Edison offers the following rate plans, specific to EVs:

• On Peak (12-9pm): 27 cents/kWh
• Off-Peak (9-12pm): 11cents/kWh

As well as this handy rate assistant, which can help you determine your zip code-specific anticipated annual costs of operation.

…and the following non-EV-specific rate plans:

• Super Off-Peak (12:00am-6:00am): 10 cents/kWh
• On-Peak (9:00pm-12:00pm): 19cents/kWh

San Diego Gas & Electric offers the following rate plans, specific to EVs:

• Three Rate Plans (2:1 Spread, 4:1, 6:1)
• 6:1 spread (Peak: 36cents/kWh Off-Peak: 6 cents/kWh)

…and the following non-EV-specific rate plans:

• Summer Peak (27.8c/kWh), Summer Semi-Peak (19.1c/kWh), Summer Off-Peak (17.4c/kWh)
• Winter Semi-Peak (18.5c/kWh), Winter Off-Peak (17.6c/kWh)

Charge Station Installation

Charge Station Permit

Utility EV Help

Find charging stations near you

Gain a better understanding of federal and local incentives

New York was one of the first cities to test the new breed of EVs when they procured BMW’s Mini E EV for testing last year. They had issues providing enough charging spots for the EVs but the test helped them understand the importance of decreasing NYC’s emissions from vehicles.

Since then New York has been more seriously investigating how EVs will fit into PlaNYC – an initiative to improve NYC’s urban environment and reduce emissions by 30% in 2030 from 2005 levels. Transportation emissions make up 22% of total emissions and a goal has been set to reduce them by 44% by 2030. The Mayor’s office released a report in January 2010 that documents how EVs can help in this reduction.

Key Information for the Potential EV Driver

Utility EV Rate Plans

Con Ed offers the following rate plans, none of which are EV-specific.

• Summer Peak (26.19 c/kWh), Summer Off-Peak (1.01c/kWh)
• Winter Peak (9.5c/kWh) Winter Off-Peak (1.01c/kWh)

Charge Station Installation

Charge Station Permit

Utility EV Help

Find charging stations near you

Gain a better understanding of federal and local incentives

To read more about the paper, click here.

But isn’t this the case for all car buyers?

Click here for more information.

The automaker is one of five companies working with the postal service to create an electric version of the classic Grumman LLV. Quantum Technologies Inc., Zap!, EDAG Inc., AC Propulsion and Auto Port Inc. will work with the USPS to test the feasibility of an electrified fleet.

Bright Automotive, working with AC Propulsion, will supply an electrified mail truck in July, when it will undergo testing in Washington D.C. for a full year.

Click here to read more.

Summary:

“This Guidelines document is not intended to be an installation manual or a replacement for approved codes and standards, but is intended to create a common knowledge base of EV requirements for stakeholders involved in the development of EV charging infrastructure. Electric vehicles have unique requirements that differ from internal combustion engine vehicles, and many stakeholders are currently not familiar with these requirements. eTec’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Guidelines provide the necessary background information for understanding EV requirements and the related codes, laws and standards, and are the foundation upon which the EV Micro-Climate© program builds in order to provide the optimum infrastructure to support and encourage the adoption of electric vehicles, wherever it is directed.”

• 2015 demand for EVs based on performance criteria ~2.3M
• Demand will drop further when cost criteria is applied. Hence EV will be a small niche in the near-term.
• Range anxiety is a serious impediment to the adoption of EVs. E-REVS and PHEVs will be overwhelmingly favored.
• Roadside Assistance and Telematics and LBS services are “a must have” feature for EVs. Must be provided standard.
• Development of a public charging infrastructure is critical -mitigates range anxiety, enable optimization of driving range, and reduce vehicle cost.
• Business models need to be reinvented – should maximizes revenue streams and provides value added services to reduce the cost burden on electric vehicle owners.
• A vehicle with a driving range of 100mi is unlikely to be seen by most Americans as their primary vehicle. A range of 150mi is more likely to merit that consideration.
• Vehicle manufacturers could consider offering BEV with a package of some free rental car days to position a BEV as a primary vehicle.

To learn more about this partnership and others, click here.

Read more: Avis to Offer Cars with Cords

Abstract:

This paper examines the impact of Virginia’s policy of exempting hybrid-electric vehicles from minimum occupancy requirements on state HOV lanes. Virginia registration statistics are used to compile hybrid market shares on a county level to compare the impact of HOV lane access to other socioeconomic variables. The HOV incentive is shown to have a significant impact in Northern Virginia, but not in the Hampton Roads area. The paper also addresses the criticisms and potential unintended consequences of the incentive policy, including whether it has impacted the “green” image of the hybrid in Virginia.

Read more here.

Meeting Minutes 2/17/10

RMI intro and updates (15 minutes)
* EDTA recap – NPVI section, had lots of PGR partners involved – looking to link in with team and PGR data, rapid response plan proposed- more to come on the relationship soon

* Challenges with registration:
- RI couldn’t get vehicle registered given vehicle had 0 cylinders, no regular checklist for regular combustion engine vehicles
- Portland had some initial challenges – smog check – fined for no tailpipe – just a process, no certificate, not in our book that way
- work through with DMV every time
- Clipper Creek – happens on east coast – outsourced – no ability to make exception – conversions and 90s vehicles

* PGR readiness certification – possible publicizing of ratings

Read the study: Technology Improvement Pathways to Cost-Effective Vehicle Electrification.

Abstract:

Electrifying transportation can reduce or eliminate dependence on foreign fuels, emission of green house gases, and emission of pollutants. One challenge is finding a pathway for vehicles that gains wide market acceptance to achieve a meaningful benefit. This paper evaluates several approaches aimed at making plug-in electric vehicles (EV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) cost-effective including opportunity charging, replacing the battery over the vehicle life, improving battery life, reducing battery cost, and providing electric power directly to the vehicle during a portion of its travel. Many combinations of PHEV electric range and battery power are included. For each case, the model accounts for battery cycle life and the national distribution of driving distances to size the battery optimally. Using the current estimates of battery life and cost, only the dynamically plugged-in pathway was cost-effective to the consumer. Significant improvements in battery life and battery cost also made PHEVs more cost-effective than today’s hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and conventional internal combustion engine vehicles (CVs).

Read more here.

Read more about Ford’s electric vehicle here.

This information follows the great news that SAE J1772 has finally been approved!

Read more here.

Read more here.