Drax Energy Solutions

With the 2030 deadline on the manufacture and sale of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, EVs are going to dominate our roads. You’ll need to transition your business fleets to EVs and, most likely, you’ll need to invest in some form of charging facility.

A recent poll showed that the most common reasons for holding off electrifying now include cost, the current economic climate and business focus on other priorities.

However, the mention of one key factor in electrification continues to be conspicuous by its absence: energy.

Why energy’s the key
The energy crisis has brought to the surface how the cost of power can make or break a business. The volatility of the market has seen prices skyrocket and organisations struggle to cope.

As we move towards an increasingly renewables-led grid, the complexities associated with balancing electricity supply and demand are increasing.

In terms of EVs, one key decision energy and fleet managers are having to consider relates to energy, finances and operations. Should they invest in powerful chargers that ramp up energy consumption but charge vehicles quickly? Or should they adapt schedules to accommodate longer charging periods. EV ranges have increased and, accordingly, their batteries need more power to deliver maximum mileage.

The question’s ‘how’ rather than ‘if’ or even ‘when’. And the answer needs to focus on energy.

The dangers of short-termism
At face value, the transition to an electric fleet might seem simple. Swap your vehicles and rely on public charging facilities or invest in some chargers of your own.

The reality’s more complex. You’ll want to analyse your existing fleet’s operational requirements so you can prioritise vehicles to transition and identify charging locations and schedules. You’ll have to choose suitable EVs and carry out electrical surveys to understand site capacity, select suitable hardware and optimise connection efficiencies. Add in the need to coordinate purchases, deliveries and installations whilst minimising disruption to business-as-usual, and it’s clear that organisations need the help of expert partners.

An expert electrification partner will manage the entire process of transitioning your fleets and implementing charging facilities. They can offer an end-to-end service with one point of contact but a raft of experience and specialist skills behind the scenes. But, equally importantly, they’ll help you avoid the traps of short-termism.

A partner like Drax Electric Vehicles will help you understand your sites’ electrical capacities and propose tailored solutions. Without expert guidance, you might find your investment in charging facilities (or future expansion) necessitates costly capacity-upgrade works.

Your EV fleet will become another electric asset, like the others you already own – machinery, air-conditioning systems and fridges and freezers, for example. Optimising the way your organisation consumes electricity – and preparing for future energy-market opportunities – will have significant financial implications.

It might be tempting to install the cheapest charging hardware – or the most powerful – as you look to serve your EV fleet or generate a new revenue stream, expert partners like Drax can help steer you in a more future-proof direction.

They’ll be aware of existing regulations and have a good idea what’s on the horizon. This enables them to provide solid advice and propose solutions that won’t be out of date within the next couple of years.

The energy-opportunity pipeline
If an organisation has on-site renewable generation assets, for example, it may choose to store excess generated electricity. It’ll then be able to draw the energy when grid electricity prices are high, or when it exceeds its forecast consumption levels.

Charging when electricity prices are low and selling it back to the Grid when demand is high (and therefore prices are too) offers organisations a new revenue stream.

Smart charging can manage the sharing of available capacity between several charging points, optimising the power supply to the vehicles. It can schedule charging to take place when energy prices are cheapest and it allows for connection to an online platform or app for real-time charging management and subsequent data analysis.

Partner with an energy expert
It pays to engage an expert to support you in electrifying fleets and implementing charging facilities. They’ll be able to analyse your operational requirements and tailor an electrification roadmap that suits your budget and your sustainability goals. A partner like Drax Electric Vehicles will also be able to connect the dots. They can link the stages of the transition to help you avoid costly mistakes – and offer the services of a team of specialists through a single, familiar point of contact.

But partnering with an energy expert will do more than get you through the process of electrification. It’ll prepare you for the future. That means cost savings, future-proofed investments, ongoing compliance and prime position for taking advantage of opportunities.

Energy might not be top of your list when you’re planning electrification. So, speak to someone whose list it is top of.