Soon a lot more electric vehicles will hit the roads, bringing with them a huge need for EV services, such as chargers. While it’s easier to charge your EV at night and daytime slow charging is also relatively cheap, it won’t solve the main issue – not being able to commute fast and seamlessly. The ideal solution would be fast charging which would get the battery full within minutes.
The reason why fast chargers are still rather scarce is very complex. EVs are still a novelty, and while there are more and more people buying them, it’s still not an overwhelming number. Even though the number of potential customers is rising, there are still no incentives for commercial property owners to invest in and maintain such expensive equipment. Charging stations are far and between, and there aren’t enough of them to meet customers’ needs, while the price they set for charging may be higher to offset the loss of revenues from regular fossil fuels. There’s a very real risk that daytime fast charging may become even more expensive than the use of fossil fuels, including diesel oil for a long time.
That’s where driv2e comes in. It’s an innovative service enabling fast and inexpensive EV charging in commercial properties (equipped with Building Management System software) by using their power grid. How does it work?
Turns out that up to 30% of electricity and heat consumed by buildings isn’t used efficiently. This power may be used for EV charging. How? First, the forced ventilation and AC systems must be adjusted to current weather and occupancy. Then, the HVAC systems are coordinated with the charging infrastructure within the closest power grid node. All this is possible thanks to an optimiser developed by driv2e.
The mastermind behind this project is Grzegorz Nowaczewski, co-founder and CEO of innovative company VPPlant, specialising in energy management and development of IT systems for the optimization of energy consumed in buildings. Nowaczewski is one of the most influential Polish entrepreneurs working on innovative technologies in energy. His focus is to promote implementing blockchain technology in energy projects. Driv2e is possible thanks to the cooperation between Virtual Power Plant Ltd and the Polish academic community, with the financial support of the National Centre for Research and Development.
Check out their offer here!
