Where public EV charging meets utilities

Utilities don’t like ambiguity – so when charge point operators (CPOs) are hoping to create partnerships around the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program or the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Grant Program, it’s crucial to engage utilities early and prepared.

John Stahlbusch, head of public charging sales & strategy at ABB E-mobility, chatted with John Engel, DISTRIBUTECH and POWERGRID editor-in-chief at the POWERGRID International Interview Studio at DISTRIBUTECH International 2024 about how utilities engage with NEVI and CFI programs and navigating public projects.

Even with all the money flowing into the EV space, it’s critical to build something self-sustaining, Stahlbusch said.

“Whenever we’re able to get these grants, we want to build something that is self-sustaining, upfront,” Stahlbusch said. “The best thing is when I see these utilities engaging with their CPO early and saying, ‘Here is something that we can do to help you at these rates so that it is feasible.’”

A well-prepared CPO is more likely to be a successful one, Stahlbusch argued. This means bringing single-line drawings and understanding the power capacity needs and whether steps will be required to meet them.

For public projects, it’s important to consider whether the portfolio will be nationwide or regional, and whether the proposed model can provide a ROI that makes the investment feasible and profitable.

“Generally a lot of things that are going to impact that are going to be, ‘What is the utility rate? What is the premium rate that we’re going to charge for the electrons that we’re selling to the market thereafter? So you have a retail price that the CPO may be paying, and then they have to charge a premium in order to be able to start to recover some of that cost of capital they put up front.”

Originally published in POWERGRID International.