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EV 4 Corners

by newev2019 0 Comments
Another Leaf in Silverton, Colorado

Welcome to the start up of the EV 4 Corners website.

Members of what was formerly the Durango Electric Vehicle Enthusiasts (DEVE) have started this website to share information about buying, owning, and using electric vehicles (EVs) or plug-in hybrid EVs (PHEVs) of all kinds in the Four Corners area. Although we are based in Durango, CO, we plan to present news and information about EV resources throughout the Four Corners, including areas in SE Utah, NE Arizona and NW New Mexico.

Because we are far afield from the nearest interstates, charging infrastructure is arriving more slowly than in densely populated areas. We plan to keep abreast of the Four Corners states’ programs to build charging infrastructure and encourage states to remember our scenic part of the country, home to many of America’s iconic road-trip and scenic routes, in their EV plans.

Buying an EV or PHEV is currently difficult for some makes and models in our area. Since 2017, Nissan of Durango was the first dealership in the area to reliably keep EVs in stock. They continue to do so. Durango’s GM and Toyota dealerships have been less enthusiastic or unable to keep their PHEVs (or the Bolt EV, in GM’s case) in stock. Toyota only sells their Prius Prime Plug-In in a limited number of states, which do not include Colorado, New Mexico or Utah. We’ll include periodic updates about EV/PHEV dealers in the Four Corners, and reviews from local drivers of the commonly available EV/PHEVs.

We will highlight the pleasure of traveling through and within the Four Corners by EV and PHEV through stories about our favorite charger stops, advice about charger stops we find lacking, and information about local businesses which support EV drivers.

Finally, we’ll provide summaries and links to national and global EV/PHEV news relevant to rural owners, drivers and those who are interested in EVs.

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New Public Chargers and free ChargePoint Chargers for Residential LPEA Customers

News from La Plata Electric Association on the charging infrastructure:

  • There will be a new Level 2 charger at the Bayfield, Colorado Town Hall parking lot by Memorial Day, 2020.
  • The locations for the Colorado Energy Office (CEO) Fast-Charging Corridors are still up in the air for Pagosa Springs and Durango.
    • We know the grant money has been awarded by CEO to ChargePoint for these chargers. Hopefully the locations will be settled on SOON!

LPEA’s home charger program has changed in some really positive ways since the description in the ad below:

  • They have removed the requirement that the car be purchased after Jan 1, 2019, so now all cars qualify.
  • They have just this week removed the requirement to be on their time-of-use rate, so now anyone is eligible.
  • LPEA has FREE Chargepoint units that they provide or rebates towards the purchase of your own charger, as well as rebates to help with the electrical cost of installing the appropriate outlet.

By Sarah Kelly

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Denver EV Council’s January Newsletter

Electric Bus on the 16th Street Mall in Denver

Includes:

  • Zero Motorcycles At IMS In Denver, January 17-19
  • Eight Intermountain West Governors Commit to Coordinating on Regional Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure, and Release Voluntary Minimum Standards for Stations (REV West MOU)
  • New Xcel Energy Rate Could Speed RTD’s Purchase of Electric Buses
  • What Does Your Car Know About You?

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EV and Charging Tech – December 2019

Battery Breakthrough May Revolutionize Electric Transportation, 12/19/19

IBM announced recently it is joining forces with a major electrolyte manufacturer,  Japan’s’ Central Glass Co., Mercedes-Benz, and a silicon valley firm (Sidus) to commercialize a new lithium battery formulation that eliminates cobalt and nickel, reduces battery fire risk and allows 80% charging in 5 minutes (www.eenews.net/climatewire/ 2019/12/19/stories/1061847515). The original work was directed at making batteries suitable for commercial aviation, and may yet do so. That IBM is convinced of the merit of its discovery is perhaps reflected in another recent story in which IBM lined up with other energy firms to promote a carbon tax among Republicans (www.eenews.net/energywire/ 2019/12/19/stories/1061847813) via Americans for Carbon Dividends. That this discovery may play a large role in solving the climate crisis is reflected in its appearance under the “climatewire” banner rather than automotive news, as a transportation electrification breakthrough combined with enhanced stationary storage for power grids could remove the two central technological holdups in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The technical details of IBM’s discovery are of course proprietary, but IBM noted that they are replacing the cobalt and nickel with iodine, an element inexpensively extracted from sea water, eliminating the questionable supply network for cobalt and nickel, especially in the war-torn areas of central Africa. IBM discovered the virtues of iodine while studying the formation of dendrites within conventional lithium ion batteries. Dendrites can grow on the battery anodes, and when sufficiently elongated are responsible for the fires that plagued early lithium batteries and still cause fires in large stationary power applications. Without giving specifics, IBM asserted that the new formulation resulted in “just extreme, out-of-the-chute power density.” Power density is critical for automotive and aviation applications.

The newly formed consortium is aiming to produced the upgraded batteries in 2-3 years.

Ten Minute Fast Charging Developed

A team of engineers at Pennsylvania State University just discovered a way to add 300 miles of range to an electric vehicle in 10 minutes, according to a pay-walled article in E&E news (www.eenews.net/energywire/2019/10/31/stories/1061420305). The key to avoiding battery degradation now associated with ultra-fast charging was raising the battery’s temperature to 140 °F for 10 minutes, then promptly returning the battery to air temperature. They engineers designed a self-heating battery for the heating component, and would rely on the battery’s cooling system—already present in most EVs—for the cooling component. The internal heating elements add about 1% to the battery’s weight and enables the battery to retain nearly 92% capacity after 2500 extreme, fast-charging cycles. As with any laboratory development, additional practical constraints are likely to emerge in translating this exciting development into commercial practice.

Although this discovery was announced as a “breakthrough” in the mainstream media, I also noticed that Tesla apparently already knows this (https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-model-s-model-x-on-route-battery-warmup-supercharger/). This spring (2019) they introduced a feature for larger-battery models S and X called “On-Route Battery Warmup.” This uses existing battery heaters to raise the temperature of the car’s batteries while driving the last 15 minutes toward a Supercharger, “reducing charge times for owners by 25%” and thereby achieving much of what the Penn State engineers designed an internal heating element for.

Compiled and summarized by Gordon Rodda

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December 2019 EV Policy Updates

by Gordon Rodda 0 Comments

Utilities join CA & CO against plan to force states to abandon Zero Emission Vehicle Standards

There is a very complicated legal fight underway pitting California against the Trump Administration (covered in: www.eenews.net/climatewire/2019/12/05/stories/1061727197). We have a dog in this fight because Colorado has chosen to follow the California rules on sales of zero emission vehicles (called the ZEV standard). It was in the news today (12/5/19) because a suite of electric utilities known formally as the “Power Companies” (Consolidated Edison, New York Power Authority, etc.) joined the legal battle on the side of California/Colorado, arguing that “ ZEV standards — regardless of changes in political leadership at the federal level – [have] provided the long-term certainty needed for the Power Companies to incorporate electrification of the transportation sector as a critical component of their business models and investment strategies.”

In other words, the electric utilities would like to promote electric vehicles, but the Trump Administration’s proposed rule would undermine the adoption of electric vehicles and therefore hurt electric power sales. This legal battle has major implications for global air quality, and will likely be fought all the way to the Supreme Court, unless Trump loses the upcoming election and the new President vacates the suit.

Compiled and summarized by Gordon Rodda

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OK Beemer…

by Sarah Kelly 0 Comments

Why European luxury sedans are becoming a relic of the past and electric SUVs are on the rise

“The sheen has worn off luxury automakers’ small sedans, like the Mercedes C-Class and BMW 3 Series, as the popularity of SUVs and Tesla grows.”

In the U.S., we expect no fewer than 25 new EV models to debut in 2020, consisting of 16 battery-powered EVs (BEVs) and nine plug-in hybrids,” said a recent analysis from Garrett Nelson of CFRA Research. “Moreover, nearly two-thirds (16) of the 25 new models are expected to be SUVs or crossovers.

Washington Post Article, 12/5/19

Compiled and summarized by Gordon Rodda

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Ford announces network of chargers for owners of forthcoming Ford EVs

From: https://www.engadget.com/2019/11/27/ford-mustang-mach-e-first-edition-sold-out-in-us/

In a pay-walled article in Friday’s E&E news (eenews.net/energywire/stories/1061307785), a new charging network made up of existing or forthcoming chargers would be partially funded by Ford Motor Company for the benefit of Ford EV owners. The network would allow Ford customers to charge at over 12,000 locations, nearly three times the size of the Tesla network. The network will be free for the first two years to purchasers of Ford EVs. The network will include fast chargers that deliver about 47 miles of range in 10 minutes for the forthcoming Ford electric SUV.

     In addition to incorporating the networks of Greenlots (Shell) and Electrify America (VW), the plan brings in Amazon.com to facilitate installation of residential chargers at the homes of Ford EV owners. The structure of the plan (handing out charger passes to Ford owners) may conflict with California’s recent rule to require charging networks to accept credit cards. Ford acknowledges that it may eventually need to open the network to drivers of other car manufacturers. This implies some level of proprietary use that does not presently exist for chargers provided by Electrify America, for example. Presumably this will be sorted out prior to the release of pure electric Fords in 2020. Environmental groups generally lauded Ford’s plan for easing the transition to electric fueling. Other manufacturers, such as GM, are also lining up or creating charging networks.

Compiled and summarized by Gordon Rodda

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