With the rise of plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) and 100% electric vehicles (BEVs), a new landscape emerges in the relationship between drivers and their vehicles.
Undoubtedly, this is a much simpler and, by all means, more sustainable scenario due to the greater efficiency of electric energy consumption compared to the burning of fossil fuels, which are irrecoverable.
Therefore, harnessing energy generated from renewable sources becomes a much more reversible process.
By correctly installing a charging point in a dwelling, in line with the REBT-ITC-52 regulations, the user will be able to optimally utilize their power supply contract.
Power balancing or Power Boost allows the charging point user to adjust consumption during charging to match the contracted power with the energy supply company.
At the end of the month, the user will have a single electricity bill, whereas previously they had separate bills for the home’s electricity and for gasoline or diesel fuel for the car.
They won’t need a new connection, complete with a new energy meter rental, to have their vehicle fully charged, nor will they have to stop at a gas station during their daily travels.
This specialization must go hand in hand with streamlining the procedures required to access significant subsidies available, such as the national Moves III program by IDAE or, for example, at the regional level, the Cambia 360 program of the Autonomous Community of Madrid.
The effects of installing home charging points can be summarized as follows:
- Efficient utilization of available power with adjustment to contracted power (load balancing).
- Time and logistics savings for energy refueling during travel.
- Energy sharing. The available power in a communal garage charger can be shared with other electric car users.
- In the near future, the car will be able to function as a battery to supply energy to the home. For instance, in homes with solar panels, the car can be charged during the day exclusively using the panels, and during times of reduced natural light, the home can draw power from the car’s battery through the Vehicle-to-Home (V2H) system. Additionally, during periods of low energy consumption in the home, surplus energy could be fed directly into the electric grid using the Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) system.
- Transporting energy between, for example, the home and the workplace, or vice versa, turning the vehicle into an additional energy transportation system.
- Charging the vehicle’s battery at remote and/or off-grid locations, such as a self-consumption photovoltaic plant, a small hydroelectric plant, a wind turbine, etc., in what we know as distributed generation utilization.
It is important to equip communal garages with a centralized conduit for routing the electrical conductors that supply car chargers.
The figures of the president of the community of residents and/or the community administrator should take the initiative.
Unlike the installation of a charging point, which cannot be denied by the community, the pre-installation with pipes and/or trays must be approved at the residents’ meeting for buildings with horizontal ownership.
Probably, in the future, various technologies will coexist for powering vehicles, including hydrogen fuel cells, synthetic fuels, biofuels, gas, etc., but there is no doubt that the rapid improvement in battery efficiency and durability, along with the deployment of charging points of all types in both public and private settings, make electric cars a reality today.
It cannot be denied that the deployment of this infrastructure is requiring not only substantial investment but also significant agreements between parties (public administration and companies, inter-company agreements, etc.) and an entirely new dedicated regulatory framework.
However, we would be mistaken to think that the implementation of hydrogen or synthetic fuels is an immediate matter from either perspective.
This is not just a matter of environmental impact and optimizing natural resources; it is also a means of reducing the energy dependence of countries and regions.
