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Enel Intros Enel X Way
Enel, a Fortune 200 energy company that plans to decarbonize its business by 2040, has announced Enel X Way, its new global business line dedicated to smart electric vehicle infrastructure solutions. Enel X Way will focus exclusively on developing EV charging solutions and services to accelerate the adoption of EVs for consumers, companies, cities, and governments. The business is currently active in 17 countries across North and South America, Europe, and Asia and manages over 320,000 public and private charging ports directly and through roaming agreements.
In North America, Enel X Way is headquartered in the heart of the Bay Area, San Carlos, Calif., and will support the rapidly increasing demand for electric vehicles and smart EV charging infrastructure with its portfolio of EV charging solutions, including the award-winning JuiceBox, which this year was recognized by CNET and Car and Driver as the “Best EV Charger Overall for 2022.” According to BloombergNEF, EV sales in North America were up 88% in 4Q 2021, bringing the EV share of new car sales to 6.8% that quarter – the highest yet for the region. With more than 110,000 charging stations deployed across North America, EV drivers plug into an Enel X Way charging station every 2.6 seconds, and since launching its flagship consumer product in 2014, JuiceBox customers have avoided more than 510 tons of greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to 1.3 million miles driven by an average gasoline-powered passenger vehicle.
EVgo & GM Offer Plug & Charge for all GM EVs
EVgo Inc. (NASDAQ: EVGO), the nation’s largest public fast charging network for electric vehicles (EVs), and General Motors (GM) announced the availability of Plug and Charge for all GM EVs* with DC fast-charging capability on the EVgo network.
Plug and Charge enables EVgo GM customers to start a fast-charging session in seconds without the need to open a mobile app or swipe an RFID or credit card, saving EV drivers time and helping to deliver a seamless and secure charging experience.
GM’s Plug and Charge service utilizes the latest iteration of EVgo’s Autocharge technology, adding enhanced security features. The Autocharge technology builds on EVgo’s leadership position in EV charging innovation and streamlines the customer experience.
“At its core, this latest iteration of the Autocharge technology is a customer convenience feature that can save drivers time by simplifying the fast-charging experience while maintaining a high level of security and protection,” said Ivo Steklac, Chief Technology Officer at EVgo. “In collaboration with GM, EVgo continues to implement new technology across multiple hardware and software platforms to enhance the charging experience.”
This innovative technology will initially be available to all GM EVs with DC fast-charging capability** at EVgo stations. After a one-time enrollment, customers will unlock convenient fast charging on the EVgo network with the charger and car communicating to securely match the vehicle to the driver’s EVgo and GM brand app account.
To enroll, GM customers must register their vehicle in the GM brand app (myChevrolet, myGMC, myCadillac), link their EVgo account and activate Plug and Charge within their GM brand app..
* Customers must have an EVgo account, active OnStar connected services and the GM brand app (myChevrolet, myGMC, myCadillac) associated with their vehicle to use the new service.
** CHAdeMO does not have a unique identifier and therefore cannot use Autocharge (or plug-and-charge). A certain subset of CCS vehicles also are unable to take advantage of Autocharge due to vehicle manufacturer limitations.
NovaCHARGE New Hot Standby Feature for Redundancy
NovaCHARGE, an innovation-driven leader in Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE), announced it has completed successful pilots of a new Hot Standby feature that provides mobile network redundancy and eliminates single-point failover at the mobile carrier level. This feature enables more robust EVSE communications to address the critical need for timely EV charging in Fleet, Workplace, Public, and High-density Residential customers.
In the past, if the connection to a carrier degraded or was lost, EV drivers had to find another way to charge, or risk being stranded. Now, if a mobile carrier goes offline for any reason, the other carrier can be utilized by all the chargers at a site. Any failover and switch to a different carrier is completely automatic.
The success of the pilots in the City of Brevard, North Carolina, and the City of Orlando, Florida, assures that anyone managing EV chargers can tap into 100% redundancy with their mobile carriers by utilizing the hot standby feature. Before this pilot, operators were stuck with a single mobile carrier and a single point of failure.
“This expansion of EV charging infrastructure is part of Orlando’s continued efforts to transform the city into one of the most environmentally friendly, socially inclusive, and economically vibrant cities in America,” said Chris Castro, Orlando’s Director of Sustainability and Resilience. “By expanding this more reliable critical infrastructure throughout the community this will help to support the growth of clean, zero-emission transportation solutions for city operations, residents, and visitors.”
In the City of Orlando, NovaCHARGE replaced the single gateway in place and re-configured the City’s chargers to support two gateways, one that is connected over the 4G-LTE service to mobile carrier ATT and a second that points to the Verizon mobile network. NovaCHARGE successfully deployed the same redundant configuration in Orlando’s Blue Jacket Park adding another layer of reliability for the city’s EV drivers.
“Our new hot standby feature extends the usefulness of our charger product line and cements NovaCHARGE’s lead in the delivery of highly available, reliable, and sustainable EV hardware and software,” said Oscar Rodriguez, chairman and CEO of NovaCHARGE. “We are especially pleased to debut this feature that ensures the critical robustness and high-availability needed to deliver reliable charging station access for drivers.”
The NovaCHARGE Hot Standby solution will be on display for customer demonstrations this week at EPRI’s Electrification 2022 Show (Booth #1323), in Charlotte NC.
Amsted Auto’s Dynamic Controllable Clutch Electro-Mechanical E-Axle Disconnect System
The electric vehicle market is hot, yet automotive suppliers are facing significant obstacles with adapting internal combustion engine (ICE) technology to EVs at the pace required to meet the demand. This includes the challenge of implementing strategies related to EV-based drivetrains. Yet, in less than two years, Amsted Automotive Group has gained a worldwide reputation—and recognition—for helping the automotive industry turn these challenges into new opportunities for success. It starts with the unique torque management needs of electrified vehicles and Amsted Automotive’s innovative clutch technology for these next-generation EVs: Dynamic Controllable Clutch (DCC), an Electro-Mechanical E-axle Disconnect system.
At the prestigious 2022 CTI Symposium USA in May—one of the largest events featuring manufacturers and suppliers for automotive transmission, hybrid, and electric drive technologies—John Jennings, Amsted Automotive’s Director of Innovation and eMobility, was invited to give a presentation on the company’s novel Multi-Functional Clutch Technology for EV Disconnects. Jennings detailed the function, efficiency, range, and cost related to the DCC Disconnect system.
Amsted Automotive was also the subject of the cover story for the June 2022 edition of a high-profile industry magazine: SAE International’s Automotive Engineering. The article lauded not only Amsted Automotive’s innovative technologies and production capabilities, but its ability to help automakers make this important switch to electrification.
Amsted’s break-through technologies that enable smooth and quick AWD and 4WD operation – Dynamic Controllable Clutch (DCC), an Electro-Mechanical E-axle Disconnect system – are incorporated into volume production electric vehicles which launched earlier this year.
Amsted Automotive Group was formed in 2021 through the merger of Amsted Industries with two of its core Tier 1 automotive supply business units, Means Industries and Burgess-Norton. Amsted Automotive Group quickly found itself at the forefront of cutting-edge EV driveline technology, notably its proprietary DCC Disconnect system. This provides seamless engagement and disengagement of the rear electric drivetrain while maintaining on-road and off-road performance. Amsted Automotive Group was able to adapt the technology for its OEM automotive customers, including volume-production electric pickup trucks and SUVs currently on the road. A comprehensive white paper on this Electro-Mechanical E-axle Disconnect solution and its technologies is available at AmstedAuto.com.///
Nuvve Integrates with Switch
Nuvve Holding Corp. (Nasdaq: NVVE), a global cleantech company intelligently electrifying the planet by deploying its patented V2G technology and services, and Switch, a global leader in standardized electric charging management and maintenance software, are partnering to integrate Nuvve’s vehicle-to-grid (V2G) GIVeTM platform with Switch’s charging management platform for operations and maintenance (O&M).
This integration between two best-in-class electric vehicle (EV) and charging software companies will improve interoperability among critical electrified transportation components: charging stations, EVs, and the grid.
The strategic partnership will allow the global transportation industry to intelligently make the switch to EVs by combining Nuvve’s V2G expertise in energy management for vehicles, fleets, connected buildings, and grid services with Switch’s EV charging platform. The combination is intended to achieve greater efficiencies, interoperability, and a seamless customer experience. Standardizing operating languages of critical software solutions is a precedent for best-in-class platform offerings across the industry.
“Combining Nuvve’s technology with the Switch platform will enable our current users to add the world’s leading energy management solution while optimizing fleet performance and increasing V2G adoption – thus reducing the total cost of electric vehicle ownership,” said Dr. Marc Mültin, founder and CEO at Switch. “Our aim is to make charging infrastructure software platforms work together seamlessly.”
How It Works
Switch’s cloud platform, built on an OCPP 2.0.1 and ISO 15118-enabled operating system, is fully native to future-proof capabilities like Plug & Charge, V1G and V2G. It delivers predictive maintenance through granular insights into each EV charger component for 100% uptime and a truly seamless EV charging experience. Nuvve’s GIVe platform is an energy aggregation management software, which includes V2G and bidirectional “smart” charging capabilities. When Nuvve’s platform is combined with the Switch platform, charge point operators (CPOs) will experience improved interoperability with the seamless combination of energy aggregation management, remote diagnostics, troubleshooting and predictive maintenance all on a single operating system.
Prior to the official strategic investment, Nuvve has been collaborating with Switch for 3 years on ISO 15118 and OCPP in an effort to work towards standardized, interoperable charging solutions.
“Building on years of fruitful collaboration, our partnership with Switch will allow remote monitoring and management of EV chargers through Switch’s platform. Any issue detected can be handled through automated processes before users even realize their occurrence,” said Hamza Lemsaddek, director of embedded solutions at Nuvve. “Together, a turnkey EV infrastructure management solution is born.”
Additionally, Switch brings new EV charger OEM relationships to the growing Nuvve ecosystem. This allows Nuvve to quickly expand and assimilate more chargers into its network and provide customers a wider range of smart charging and V2G solutions.
“Rather than establishing charging station partnerships alone, we now have a way to coordinate efforts with a vertically-integrated EV technology solution through Switch,” said Gregory Poilasne, co-founder and CEO of Nuvve. “This new partnership will help expedite the integration of Nuvve’s patented V2G software into more charging systems around the world as an additional avenue to increase our megawatts under management.”
“With Nuvve’s strategic investment, Switch has completed its initial fundraising objectives. Other investors have included Link Capital of Norway, two family offices and private individuals,” added Dr. Mültin.
Integration between the companies is scheduled to be completed by late Q1 2023.///
EV Connect Works with PG&E
EV Connect, a leader in electric vehicle (EV) charging management solutions, announced that it has successfully commissioned its first two projects through a program with California’s largest electric utility. As a vendor in the EV Fast Charge Program from the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), EV Connect worked alongside the utility and with multiple partners, including Gilbarco Veeder-Root, the world’s leading fueling, and convenience store equipment and technology manufacturer, to identify sites and deploy charging stations. EV Connect will deploy over 40 DCFC stations, including several high-power DCFC stations of 180kW, with ten sites awarded to date across Northern California and two sites activated.
Under the program, to date, EV Connect has deployed eight Tritium 50kW-capacity DCFCs between a United Park convenience store in Chowchilla, CA, and an SWS Fuel-managed convenience store in Madera, CA. The SWS Fuel store was chosen for its 24/7 operating hours, location in an economically disadvantaged community, and proximity to California State Route 99. Taking advantage of the EV Fast Charge Program and the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District rebate, EV Connect worked with SWS Fuel to shepherd the project from site evaluation through activation. All make-ready infrastructure was funded by PG&E, including design, permitting, and infrastructure construction. EV Connect installed and activated the charging stations on the EV Connect platform, through which it will provide station connectivity and operational support to SWS Fuel.
Rivian Level 3 Fast Charging in Colorado & California
Rivian opens three fast charging sites this week in Colorado and California, the first deployments in its nationwide Rivian Adventure Network. These “Level 3” DC fast charging sites will initially provide over 200 kilowatts of power, allowing Rivian drivers to add as much as 140 miles of range in just 20 minutes and creating new opportunities for sustainable adventure far from home.
The first Rivian Adventure Network site in Salida, Colorado opened to the public on Monday, June 27 with four chargers, including a pull-through charger to accommodate vehicles towing trailers. The site also hosts four “Level 2” Rivian Waypoints chargers, which are available for use by any EV – not just Rivian vehicles – through the Rivian smartphone app. Thanks to its natural beauty and abundant nearby recreational opportunities, Salida is an ideal location for Rivian’s first fast charging site. The second and third Adventure Network sites in Inyokern and Bishop, California, will open on June 28 and 29. These California sites support frequently visited areas like Yosemite National Park, Sequoia National Forest, Mammoth Lakes, and Death Valley National Park.
“We designed Rivian charging to support electrified adventure, and these first sites demonstrate how we’re enabling drivers to responsibly reach some of the nation’s most breathtaking natural spaces,” said Trent Warnke, Rivian’s Senior Director of Energy and Charging Solutions. “In addition to scenic or off-the-beaten-path destinations, our fast charging rollout is designed to ensure travelers have places to charge along major transportation corridors coast to coast.”
Recognizing that vehicle electrification is only one step in reducing environmental impact, Rivian is matching charging on Rivian Adventure Network and Waypoints chargers with 100% renewable energy on an annual basis. Rivian is engaging directly with clean energy developers and operators to promote tangible contributions to a cleaner grid when drivers plug in. To support this initiative, Rivian is building a portfolio of high-impact renewable projects around the country that balance technologies, location, and energy solutions. Integrating these solutions into a company-wide sustainability strategy is a foundational step on our path toward net-zero carbon emissions.
Rivian will continue opening Rivian Adventure Network sites with an initial goal of 3,500 fast chargers at 600 sites across North America.
Fosreee Power Buys American with HG & Gigagactory in Hilliard, Ohio
Forsee Power (FR0014005SB3 – FORSE) (Paris:FORSE), an expert in smart battery systems for sustainable electromobility, announces at the SelectUSA Investment Summit in Washington D.C. that the Group establishes its North American headquarters and gigafactory in Hilliard, Ohio.
This is a major step in the development of the Group that now has a unique international footprint in the battery system industry.
Building a ‘Buy America’ compliant presence in a very strategic market
The Group will continue serving existing customers and will develop a local customer base in North America. Forsee Power will establish an industrial base in the United States to target the growing commercial vehicle market, primarily buses, trucks, off-highway vehicles, light urban and utility vehicles and trains. This will not only optimize costs and the supply chain – which is beginning to take hold on the continent – but it is also a requirement for certain key markets such as the city bus market, which requires a local presence to comply with the FAST Act (70% of value must be produced locally in public procurement).
The Group will leverage its experience of more than 1,200 buses and 100,000 light vehicles equipped with Forsee Power batteries.
A scalable 3-GWh manufacturing site with 150 employees by 2027
Forsee Power has selected Hilliard, Ohio, located in the Columbus Region, to establish its North American headquarters and Gigafactory, pending approvals.
To quickly start operations, the Group will duplicate the production of existing products and product ranges, cover the needs of current and local customers with its line of battery systems, as well as systems designed specifically for the US market and foster the emergence of a local skills base.
The Group’s aim is to achieve production capacity of 3 GWh in the United States by 2027, which it estimates would involve first-phase investments of more than EUR 13 million, adapting its product offer to the local market, building production lines, and recruiting a local team of 150 employees.
The site, located at 4555 Lyman Drive in Hilliard, Ohio in the Columbus Region is 138,000 square feet (13,000 square meters) and will host corporate office, manufacturing operations and R&D capabilities. It is a scalable site, strategically located to attract operators and as well engineers in a fast-growing neighborhood.
NFI Orders 10 Hypetruck ERX fro Hyliion
Hyliion Holdings Corp. (NYSE: HYLN) (“Hyliion”), a leader in electrified powertrain solutions for Class 8 semi-trucks, today announced that NFI has ordered 10 units backed by deposits to secure Hypertruck ERX™ production slots.
A leader in supply chain logistics with a fleet of over 4,500 trucks, NFI’s focus on sustainably serving communities across North America led to their interest in the Hypertruck ERX. The order comes after the Hypertruck Innovation Council member visited Hyliion’s headquarters for a Ride and Drive experience to evaluate the impact adding Hypertruck ERX units to their fleet could have in further driving their momentum in the zero-emissions goods movement.
PG&E Building EV Chargers at 22 Schools
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) announced it has broken ground on the first of up to 130 new electric vehicle (EV) charging ports at 22 schools in its service area.
The first installation is at Eastside College Preparatory School in East Palo Alto, Calif. Overall, PG&E’s EV Charge Schools pilot program aims to help fill charging gaps at these locations and support California’s clean transportation and decarbonization goals.
Through the EV Charge Schools pilot, PG&E will install level 2 charging stations at school facilities and educational institutions for staff, parents and students to charge their EVs, with access varying by location. PG&E will help fund the costs of purchasing and installing the EV charging equipment and networking fees at these schools as well as ongoing maintenance and operations. With up to 40% of the new chargers located in disadvantaged communities, the pilot will help to bring EV charging options to customers who might not have had them before.
PG&E also will develop EV and sustainability curriculum for all schools in its service area along with teacher training options. The kindergarten through grade 12 curriculum will allow teachers to connect classroom learning to real-world infrastructure and help expand awareness of clean energy transportation.
Xos Delivers E-Stepvans to Cutone in Ontario
Xos, Inc., a leading fleet services provider and manufacturer of Class 5 through Class 8 battery-electric vehicles, today announced the delivery of three of its 100% battery-electric stepvans to FedEx Ground Operator Cutone Transport Inc. (“Cutone”) in Ontario, Canada during the month of June 2022. FedEx Ground Operators work as FedEx Corporation independent service providers (ISPs). With this delivery, Cutone becomes Xos’ first Canada-based customer.
Autoneum Reduces E-Nosie from Electric Vehicles
Catering to the acoustic requirements of electric vehicles, Autoneum has extended its proven concepts for noise-reducing engine encapsulations to new applications related to electric drives. Hybrid-Acoustics PET and the foam-based alternatives Hybrid-Acoustics FLEX and Fit FLEX ensure optimum noise protection in e-cars and thus significantly improve driving comfort. All three technologies are characterized by a high acoustic performance tailored to specific customer needs and zero waste production.
Disturbing noises such as the high-frequency sounds of e-motors and other electric devices or the whining noise of the gearbox are posing new acoustic challenges for vehicle manufacturers worldwide. Anticipating the increasing demand for sound-reducing components in both the front and the rear of e-cars early on, Autoneum has expanded its well-established technologies for noise protection in the engine bay to new tailor-made applications for electric vehicles.
With the fibrous technology Hybrid-Acoustics PET and the two foam alternatives Hybrid-Acoustics FLEX and Fit FLEX, the Company offers three standardized technologies that reduce noise directly at the source, thereby improving driver comfort. All three technologies are produced waste-free and their adaptive capacity to different sizes and shapes allows for a broad spectrum of uses in electric vehicles: from e-motor encapsulations to the reduction of noise and vibration of inverters, gearbox, pumps and compressors. By offering both fibrous and foam-based variants, Autoneum is able to flexibly cater to individual customer needs and preferences with regard to material, acoustic concept, sustainability and costs.
In terms of sustainable noise protection in the engine bay, Autoneum’s patented innovation Hybrid-Acoustics PET sets the tone: it is made of 100 percent PET with up to 50 percent recycled fibers; cut-offs in production are reclaimed, processed and reused and the material can be fully recycled at the end of product life. The unique textile technology, which is part of the Company’s sustainability label Autoneum Pure, is particularly suited to attenuating high-frequency sounds of the electric drive unit and offers the optimum balance of absorption and insulation. Moreover, components made of Hybrid-Acoustics PET are up to 40 percent lighter compared to standard insulators.
To accommodate the differing preferences of vehicle manufacturers, Autoneum has complemented its lightweight textile technology with two foam-based alternatives. Since the foam is injected in both technologies, no waste is generated during production either. Hybrid-Acoustics FLEX is based on the same acoustic concept as Hybrid-Acoustics PET, but the decoupler is made of foam instead of felt. Autoneum’s Fit FLEX, on the other hand, combines the foam decoupler with an injection molded heavy layer. Thanks to the high geometrical adaptability of foam to even complex shapes, both technologies offer outstanding acoustic performance in the insulation of e-motors and other noise sources in electric vehicles. Furthermore, the absorbing or insulating acoustic quality of the foam can be flexibly tuned to specific customer needs.
Autoneum’s innovative sound-reducing technologies for e-motor encapsulations and other noise-emitting parts in electric vehicles are available in Europe, North America and China.