Green Tech

Nissan will begin taking orders for its LEAF EV in Spring 2010.

(Credit: Nissan)

The EV Project, a pilot program to develop a nationwide public charging system for electric vehicles, is expected to give people an opportunity to inspect the Nissan LEAF EV more closely on Thursday and announce expansion plans that include San Diego.

The unveiling will take place at a press conference in San Diego and include representatives from San Diego Gas & Electric, the City of San Diego, the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), and Don Kramer, the president of Ecotality's subsidiary eTec.

Electric-charging station manufacturer Ecotality has received $100 million in stimulus funding from the U.S. Department of Energy and is one of the lead partners on the EV Project which will span 11 U.S. cities in five states: Arizona, California, Oregon, Tennessee, and Washington.

While the company has been partnering with Nissan to make public charging options a reality in the U.S., Ecotality has repeatedly said its stations are designed to fit Society of Automotive Engineers standards so that they'll be compatible with any electric cars built to that standard.

Ecotality announced Wednesday that its CEO Jonathan Read is currently in China as part of a 40-person delegation accompanying U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke. The group is taking part in the China Clean Energy Roundtable as part of President Barack Obama's visit to China.

Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao announced Wednesday a U.S.-China "Electric Vehicles Initiative" to encourage research and develop joint standards for electric transportation, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

Ecotality is in talks with leading automakers--not only Nissan--concerning its electric charging stations for highway-legal electric cars, according to CEO Jonathan Read.

"We have been contacted by every major automaker about electric vehicle systems relating to charging and infrastructure. We expect to convert these discussions into firm contracts," Read told investors Wednesday at a shareholders' conference that was open to the press.

The Arizona-based company recently announced a partnership with Nissan and the local governments in the Phoenix and Tucson, Ariz., areas to build charging stations for electric cars that would cover the regions and the 116-mile stretch between them to make an electric vehicle corridor.

Ecotality's CEO Jonathan Read

(Credit: Ecotality)

Read told CNET News at the time that while Nissan's electric vehicles (or EVs) will be the first ones commercially available in the area, Ecotality's charging stations will be built to Society of Automotive Engineers standards so that they'll be compatible with any electric cars built to that standard.

In addition to the going after Big Auto, Read told investors the company has applied for Department of Energy loan packages to expand its manufacturing and for other loans and grants from the federal government. It has also bid on contracts in both the public and private sectors.

"We're building a strong position to benefit from the new stimulus program. Many companies are planning for the launch of their EVs, and we've responded to proposals. We have applied or are in the process of applying for about $1.5 billion in contracts through private and government programs. Obviously, receipt of any of these contracts would drastically change the dynamic of our company," said Read.

Ecotality and subsidiary eTec have been in the battery-charging business for years for light-use utility trucks like ones used at airports or for commercial fleets. And charging stations for the general consumer are not an entirely new foray for the company either. While Delphi was the manufacturer, eTec installed many of the charging stations for General Motors' EV1s of "who killed the electric car?" fame.

An artist's rendering of what Ecotality fast-charging commercial stations may look like.

(Credit: Ecotality)

Nissan has promised to supply its highway-legal electric vehicles to the Phoenix area, as well as the previously announced Tucson area, for public and private fleets by the end of 2010, the Renault-Nissan Alliance plans to announce Thursday.

"This is a deployment well in excess of a couple hundred," said Mark Perry, director of product planning for Nissan North America.

In anticipation of Nissan's municipal and eventual commercial electric vehicle (EV) launch, the energy technology company Ecotality plans to also announce on Thursday an expansion of its chain of electric charging stations beyond the Tucson Metro area stations it announced in March.

The total plan, which includes partnerships with the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) and Pima Association of Governments (PAG), is that Ecotality will create an electric plug-in infrastructure corridor encompassing the greater metropolitan areas of both Phoenix (Maricopa County) and Tucson (Pima County), as well as the 116-mile stretch between them along the Interstate 10 highway.

Using a 480-volt rapid-charge option, Nissan's EV-02 prototype--which has the battery pack and motor that will be used in the final commercial version--can charge up to 80 percent capacity in about 26 minutes, according to Perry.

Ecotality's CEO Jonathan Read said charging up at its SAE Level 3 (440V) fast-charging stations may actually even be a little quicker in practice.

Ecotality's fast-charging commercial stations may look similar to those Ecotality stations used for typical private off-road EV fleets.

(Credit: Ecotality)

"Nissan's conservative. We believe that generally the charge time can be 15-20 minutes, given most people are not going to run to zero. I almost dare you to try to get a Starbucks in less than 15 minutes. It's really conducive to a stop for a beverage, a quick shop, a stop at the pharmacy, so we're going to position these where people normally stop for a few minutes anyway," said Read.

In addition to commercial charging stations, there are also plans to work with local utilities to install 220-volt outlets in the garages of would-be EV owners. At those outlets, Nissan's EV would take an average 4 hours to recharge from zero to full capacity, according to Perry.

But you won't have to be a Nissan customer per se to get a charge from an Ecotality-built station in Arizona.

"Our charging stations are going to be agnostic; they'll work on any battery in any vehicle that adheres to the SAE standards. So while Nissan will be the first here, they'll attach to any vehicle that comes along," said Read.

Phoenix and Tucson residents may actually have cooperative community leaders to thank for the EV opportunity, if Nissan is to be believed.

Never underestimate the value of municipalities that get along with each other, their utilities, and the private sector when embarking on projects that require permitting, said Perry.

"Phoenix had all the things we were looking for in a launch market: High consumer interest, but really something you shouldn't underestimate (is) a regional planning authority that has a history of working well together and moving things forward in a coordinated fashion to make Phoenix plug-in ready. Plus, we have support from the utility companies. Plus interest from the private sector, support from Ecotality, and major employers interested in participating. When those factors are there, that's what you want," said Perry.

Perry said he's seen interest from companies who'd like to provide employees with free charging stations in their parking facilities as part of a sustainability plan.

Ecotality, which is based in Scottsdale, Ariz., had another logical reason.

"We actually have a long and storied history in electric here. We worked on charging stations for the old EV1s before they were crunched by General Motors," said Read, referring to Ecotality's subsidiary eTec.

While the charging equipment was made by Delphi, eTec installed many of the residential charging stations for General Motors' EV1 customers in the Southwest, particularly Arizona, as well as some public charging stations, according to Ecotality.

Rendering of what a fast-charging station for electric vehicles could look like

(Credit: Ecotality)

Electric vehicles equipped with fast-charging capability are headed to production and will be on the road next year.

All that's needed to reduce the charging time for these cars from hours to minutes are Level 3 440-volt fast-charging stations. But to date, none are public.

Ecotality, a clean-technology company in Scottsdale, Ariz., wants to fill that void. It designs and sells these rapid rechargers for $15,000 to $35,000, depending on the structure requirements, mostly to warehouses and airports for fleet vehicles.

Given Ecotality's partnership with Nissan, the Tucson Metro Area, and the Pima Association of Governments (PAG)--a nonprofit metropolitan-planning organization in the Tucson area--drivers may soon be charging up at these stations in shopping malls and gas stations.

Ecotality spokesman Colin Read said these charging stations will help extend the range of all-electric vehicles and ease consumer anxiety of getting stuck on the road with a dead battery.

Below is a slideshow of current fast-charging stations and what next-generation Level 3 chargers could look like.

Ecotality poised to roll out fast-charging EV infrastructure--photos

Ecotality plans to acquire Minit-Charger, a subsidiary of publicly traded Edison International, for $3 million in cash and stock, both companies announced Thursday.

Minit-Charger makes chargers for rechargeable lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries that can be used in electric light construction vehicles like forklifts. The Irvine, Calif.-based company includes Home Depot, Costco Wholesale, and Toyota Motor among its customers.

"It's the charging system, very complex, that allows batteries to be charged to maximum charge on minimum time. It has a complex electrical system that adjusts once every 300 times per minute for variances," Ecotality CEO Jonathan Read said in an interview.

Ecotality plans to incorporate Minit-Charger under eTec, another battery company Ecotality acquired in early November. Read said he hopes to "solidify Ecotality's position in the fast-charge battery market for the transportation industry" with this last acquisition.

It's a broadening of focus for the energy technology company that seems logical. Batteries play a leading role in the development of energy-efficient vehicles. When it comes to plug-in electric vehicles, one of the biggest setbacks is the limited range per charge. This is why electric vehicles have so far only really found a niche market in places that don't require vehicles to travel long distances, like warehouse facilities or municipalities.

Minit-Charger's claim to fame, according to Read, is that its "fast chargers" can fully recharge a lead-acid battery for a forklift, which can go about 8 hours between charges, in just 10 to 15 minutes.

This technology could be applied down the road to a new type of business model once electric cars come to the consumer market. To aid in the range problem, drivers could plug in and recharge at places like grocery stores while they shop or office buildings while they work, said Read.

Ecotality is best known for its Hydrality technology, a process it developed in conjunction with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory that produces hydrogen from magnesium pellets and water. But the company has been making purchases over the last year that include fuel cell technology, hydrogen fuel cell gear for universities and labs, and battery technology.