Demand Charge Savings
Save on operating costs by reducing peak power demand charges!
The operating costs of an EV fast-charging station are an important factor to consider in setting up a fast-charging location and can be significantly impacted by the choice of battery buffered v. direct-to-grid charging hardware.
In the U.S., utility bills for commercial and industrial customers are based on the quantity of energy used (energy charges, $/kWh) and the customer’s maximum power demand draw on the grid (demand charges, usually $/kW). In the case of EV charging stations, while the energy delivered during charging is the same for all charging hardware, the maximum peak power demand can be lowered by 65% using a battery-buffered solution like ChargeBox.
Demand charges and EV fast charging
DCFC charging creates a distinct power demand and load profile on the electricity grid. It requires high-power capacity (kW) for a relatively short period of time to deliver a fast charge to vehicles. This peak power draw will trigger high demand charges to operators using direct-to-grid charging solutions. In contrast, the battery-buffered ChargeBox solution from ADS-TEC Energy limits peak power to 100 kW while delivering ultra-fast 320 kW charging power to any vehicle that can charge at that speed. In other words, ChargeBox is cutting the peak power demand impact by two thirds compared to a standard (direct-to-grid) DC charging station operating at the same power. This reduced peak power demand leads to substantial savings in charging station operating costs.
Utility rates vary across the U.S.
Demand charges are set by the utility and reflect the condition of the local electricity grid and the costs for the utility to add more peak power capacity to the grid, for example by building new peaking power plants to accommodate the additional capacity. Demand charges vary across the United States, so that a location-specific analysis is recommended to assess the potential savings for operators.