Ev-Optimizer - Optimising Energy Costs For Electric Vehicles

Meindert Romkes, Founder, CEO, and CTO

The future is electric!

Indeed, if the growth forecasts for the electric vehicle (EV) industry is any guide, automotive manufacturers are steadily shifting their resources to the electric segment. However, many end-customers are still hesitant to bet on the ‘electric future.’ For a typical consumer, cost-effectiveness has always been the golden standard for placing their stakes on an EV product.

“People don’t want their electricity bills to skyrocket after bringing an EV into their garage,” says Meindert Romkes, an innovator in the EV industry.

According to Romkes, this hesitance is prompted by the many challenges that EV owners are already facing. On the one hand, the home charging outlets powered by local grid connections often lack the required capacity to charge EVs efficiently. And on the other, owners have to spend an excessive amount of time perfecting their EV charging schedules so that it doesn’t overlap with peak energy usage periods and lead to overloads. If EV owners want to avoid such inconveniences, their only other option is to level up their grid connection, which costs a significant amount of capital.

Having noticed these challenges, Romkes wanted to find a better solution that could help EV buyers avoid unnecessary expenses. He searched far and wide, but without luck. So, he went about designing the solution himself. The result was EV-Optimizer, a dynamic load balancing device for safe charging with optimal usage of the available electricity.

EV CHARGING CAUGHT BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE, NO MORE!

Using EV-Optimizer, customers can safely and efficiently charge their EVs without having to worry about overloads. “Our system is designed to protect user infrastructure against peak overloads, reduce electricity consumption, and avoid additional grid costs,” says Romkes, founder, CEO, and CTO of EV-Optimizer. As a plug-and-play solution, EV-Optimizer .

can either be connected to the P1 port of a smart meter or use smart metering coils at the grid connection (if a connection does not have a smart meter) to get up and running. 

For grid connections with underground cabling, EV-Optimizer also comes in a wireless variant, which can be mounted above ground, up to a distance of 100 metres from the power unit. Besides, the solution can also be upgraded for solar-based installations as per client requirements.

Once installed, the system leverages inbuilt algorithms to automatically measure (up to 2000 amperes of current) and determine the unused capacity of the power supplied from grid connections and allocate the excess energy to charge the EVs. Thus, by making optimal use of the available energy, the device eliminates the need for expensive level-ups and upgrades of existing connections, facilitating cost-saving of up to 700 euros per property.

OPTIMISED FOR VARYING REQUIREMENTS

Today, the lack of commercial charging stations is also narrowing the recharge windows for EV users. Although EV production is rising at an unprecedented rate, industry stakeholders are yet to implement a clear roadmap for the charging infrastructure required to support EV purchases. “The widening gap between the power grids and the EV ecosystem is also playing a role in the slow implementation of large-scale charging infrastructures in residential and public areas,” mentions Romkes. In these circumstances, load balancing is a critical factor that will help bridge the gap between the grid and the charging points.

The smart charging achieved from dynamic load balancing grants unrivalled charging efficiency without overload or an increase in power supply costs. Be it a personal vehicle or an EV fleet, dynamic load balancing makes charging no more difficult than filling up a petrol or diesel-powered car. Specifically, the robust and efficient smart solutions like EV-Optimizer will allow charging stations to seamlessly divide available power from the grid among the vehicles and also tap into auxiliary power from solar units whenever needed. “The versatility of our solution makes it a perfect load balancing tool for EV charging in a broad range of business settings, including parks, office buildings, municipalities, and parking garages,” mentions Romkes. Whether it is a home connection with a single outlet or a large-scale charging station with 20 power outlets, EV-Optimizer makes it safe, easy, and cost-effective to charge EVs.

These capabilities are making EV-Optimizer a perfect smart solution for workplace charging stations. Implementing a charging station that is powered by a dynamic load balancing solution means that employees can charge their EVs over working hours. All they have to do is connect their EVs to the power outlets and let the solution schedule charging and allocate power as per the priority of use. As an added advantage, smart workplace charging reduces domestic charging demands—which becomes a favourable incentive for employees.

As for business fleets also, the advantages of EV-Optimizer are exponential. The solution can be used to distribute and manage available power across multiple vehicles in a seamless manner through smarter scheduling, thus eliminating the unnecessary downtime that exists today. The usage of fleet vehicles can be accurately planned, and charging can be done accordingly with the available power rather than investing in additional cabling and substation upgrades.

Equally impressive is the role that EV-Optimizer can play fora greater cost-saving part in areas where the cost of electricity varies throughout the day. The company is working on a new functionality that will allow EV-Optimizer to determine the best charging time when the electricity cost is lowest, thus significantly reducing the charging costs. Likewise, if EVs are equipped with vehicle to grid (V2G) battery packs, EV users will be able to discharge and sell the residual energy in the car to the grid during the high price/high-peak period, and recharge the vehicle during low price/off-peak period.

PAVING A SUSTAINABLE PATH TO A CUSTOMER-FOCUSED ELECTRIC FUTURE

Today, EV-Optimizer is steadily increasing its footprint across the world, leveraging its network of distributing partners to reach potential customers. Rather than selling the product themselves, the company is focusing its efforts on backing the distribution partners with impeccable lead generation to expand their reach and facilitate mutual growth. Owing to this unique business strategy, EV-Optimizer has witnessed a phenomenal 300 percent growth in the last year alone. In the coming months, the company will expand beyond Europe into the U.S and conquer the new market with its unique solution.