Gareth Ragg of EV Update speaks to Tom Oefler, International Sales Manager at RWE Effizienz GmbH in Dortmund, Germany about electric charging in Europe.
EV Update: The EV charging sector is very dynamic, with lots of options on the table. What approach is RWE taking in Europe’s fast-moving charging space?
Tom Oefler: From our perspective, we see all the different situations in daily life where you’re going to charge. As part of our national platform of E-Mobility, we have home charging of course and DC ultra fast charging. We also have infrastructure partners, which covers charging at work and public or semi-public charging. The highest number of charge point for us is home charging [with 62,000 charge points expected by 2014] and at work 935,890 charge points by 2014]. The largest share of consumption – 80% - we think will be at home or at work. We see public charging on highways and semi-public charging in restaurants and shopping areas as the lower part of consumption, at 20%.
EV Update: Does RWE lean towards fast DC charging over AC charging?
Tom Oefler: We do understand the advantages of quick charging, with DC or 22kW AC charging. But from a grid perspective, these DC charging powers do put more stress on the grid than AC [charging]. We believe that - especially when you see parking times – there are definitely options at home and at work where charging of cars can be done more efficiently. There’s been some analysis done in Germany on grid loads at different charging levels where there’s no smart charging integrated. When you charge with 3.7kW, a peek will be reached which is much lower than when you charge with 20kW.
EV Update: How would you summarise your approach to smart charging then?
Tom Oefler: We see smart charging, or intelligent charging, as an opportunity to influence the charging process so as to accommodate or take into consideration either the renewable energy production, and also to look at the load or demand for energy in the grid in general. So when there’s high already demand, you’re trying to avoid charging your EV during that time and push into other periods during the day or the night.
EV Update: Are standards required to manage demand and supply needs for EV use going forward?
Tom Oefler: Yes, I think it will be crucial over the next few years as new standards are integrated into cars and charging infrastructure. Basically there are two standards at present. There’s PWM Signal [IEC 61851], which is widely used right now. This decides how much energy will be provided to the car, and how much energy the car asks for from the charging station. Right now the development in the second standard – IEC 15118 – concentrates on a bi-directional communication between the car and the infrastructure. The IEC 15118 is basically a negotiation between the charging needs of the driver and the grid. So when are the peek loads? When are prices high or low?
If you plan to influence the charging behaviour of the charging car and you do not charge the car in evening hours when demand is high anyway, then you need information from the user of the car to be able to know their limitation in usage of the car. Our main goal is to reduce the impact on the grid. So when there’s a lot of renewable energy, for example, we could influence the charging process and charge when there’s a lot of wind. That’s why we need this information [about customer car use]. Otherwise we run the risk of delaying the charging process because we are waiting for more renewable energy that has been forecasted during the night, but then the driver is leaving and his battery is not charged.
EV Update: When do you expect the IEC 15118 standard to come into force?
Tom Oefler: Well, RWE and Daimler worked on the very early parts – SCCP – where an automatic communication between the car and the charging point happened. That was the starting point of this IEC development. We expect IEC 15118 to be finalised and in implementation by the first half of 2013. It will be the basis for smart charging, from our point of view.
Our charging points – we are working on solutions for this POC communication. We do have POC in all of our smart charging stations across Europe, which number around 1,400. If everything is charged at the maximum, that gives us a capacity of 30MW, which already gives you some leeway to integrate renewable energies or to function as storage or flexible loads in the grid.
EV Update: A recent EV Update readers survey suggests SAE (80%) would outpace CHADeMO (20%) as the dominant charging standard in Europe. Do you agree?
Tom Oefler: Yes, I think CHADeMO faces some serious challenges. It’s quite a political discussion too. The German manufacturers are pushing for CHADeMO, and they have been quite successful at this. Technically, I think both will work. Ultimately it comes down to what will be presented by the OEMs.
EV Update: The EV charging sector is very dynamic, with lots of options on the table. What approach is RWE taking in Europe’s fast-moving charging space?
Tom Oefler: From our perspective, we see all the different situations in daily life where you’re going to charge. As part of our national platform of E-Mobility, we have home charging of course and DC ultra fast charging. We also have infrastructure partners, which covers charging at work and public or semi-public charging. The highest number of charge point for us is home charging [with 62,000 charge points expected by 2014] and at work 935,890 charge points by 2014]. The largest share of consumption – 80% - we think will be at home or at work. We see public charging on highways and semi-public charging in restaurants and shopping areas as the lower part of consumption, at 20%.
EV Update: Does RWE lean towards fast DC charging over AC charging?
Tom Oefler: We do understand the advantages of quick charging, with DC or 22kW AC charging. But from a grid perspective, these DC charging powers do put more stress on the grid than AC [charging]. We believe that - especially when you see parking times – there are definitely options at home and at work where charging of cars can be done more efficiently. There’s been some analysis done in Germany on grid loads at different charging levels where there’s no smart charging integrated. When you charge with 3.7kW, a peek will be reached which is much lower than when you charge with 20kW.
EV Update: How would you summarise your approach to smart charging then?
Tom Oefler: We see smart charging, or intelligent charging, as an opportunity to influence the charging process so as to accommodate or take into consideration either the renewable energy production, and also to look at the load or demand for energy in the grid in general. So when there’s high already demand, you’re trying to avoid charging your EV during that time and push into other periods during the day or the night.
EV Update: Are standards required to manage demand and supply needs for EV use going forward?
Tom Oefler: Yes, I think it will be crucial over the next few years as new standards are integrated into cars and charging infrastructure. Basically there are two standards at present. There’s PWM Signal [IEC 61851], which is widely used right now. This decides how much energy will be provided to the car, and how much energy the car asks for from the charging station. Right now the development in the second standard – IEC 15118 – concentrates on a bi-directional communication between the car and the infrastructure. The IEC 15118 is basically a negotiation between the charging needs of the driver and the grid. So when are the peek loads? When are prices high or low?
If you plan to influence the charging behaviour of the charging car and you do not charge the car in evening hours when demand is high anyway, then you need information from the user of the car to be able to know their limitation in usage of the car. Our main goal is to reduce the impact on the grid. So when there’s a lot of renewable energy, for example, we could influence the charging process and charge when there’s a lot of wind. That’s why we need this information [about customer car use]. Otherwise we run the risk of delaying the charging process because we are waiting for more renewable energy that has been forecasted during the night, but then the driver is leaving and his battery is not charged.
EV Update: When do you expect the IEC 15118 standard to come into force?
Tom Oefler: Well, RWE and Daimler worked on the very early parts – SCCP – where an automatic communication between the car and the charging point happened. That was the starting point of this IEC development. We expect IEC 15118 to be finalised and in implementation by the first half of 2013. It will be the basis for smart charging, from our point of view.
Our charging points – we are working on solutions for this POC communication. We do have POC in all of our smart charging stations across Europe, which number around 1,400. If everything is charged at the maximum, that gives us a capacity of 30MW, which already gives you some leeway to integrate renewable energies or to function as storage or flexible loads in the grid.
EV Update: A recent EV Update readers survey suggests SAE (80%) would outpace CHADeMO (20%) as the dominant charging standard in Europe. Do you agree?
Tom Oefler: Yes, I think CHADeMO faces some serious challenges. It’s quite a political discussion too. The German manufacturers are pushing for CHADeMO, and they have been quite successful at this. Technically, I think both will work. Ultimately it comes down to what will be presented by the OEMs.
