A start-up provider of off-grid electric vehicle charging systems is bidding to establish a foothold in the forecourt sector through a partnership with retail consultancy Shopworks.
EV-OG’s equipment is powered by recycled, hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), although the company wants to transition eventually to hydrogen.
It comprises a battery storage system and recycled fuel generator claimed to be smaller than a parking space and uses technology from Japanese industrial manufacturer Nidec.
Last year, EV-OG launched its first unit, at Telford’s Wrekin Retail Park, with two 150kW chargers that deliver an 80% charge in 30 minutes.
Now Shopworks believes it can help the company break into the forecourt market. “It’s a really exciting start-up product,” says the practice’s Matt Kavanagh.
“It’s sustainable because it’s produced from a green biofuel generator and solar panels, and the unit is quieter than an air conditioner and is IP54 fire rated, so it’s perfect as an addition to the standard forecourt fuel offer.”
He adds: “The great thing about it is that you don’t need to install expensive power lines or wait months to get approval to install it. If you do install permanent power at some point, they will move your off-grid unit to another of your sites.”
Shopworks and EV-OG are offering retailers a choice of two business models: renting ground space to the supplier where the forecourt would forego revenue from motorists charging their cars but would benefit from footfall, or leasing the actual equipment.
Kavanagh says there is a “pipeline of sites” interested in the product, but “I can’t give you names of who we’re talking to yet”.
One forecourt operator seriously considering acquiring the product is Pricewatch Group. Its general manager Tom Buckley says the cost and complication of establishing a grid connection to its rural Sussex sites to install EV chargers has led to it looking at off-grid options.
EV-OG’s HVO-powered technology is particularly attractive, says Buckley, because the recycled fuel is cheaper and easier to store and transport than hydrogen, which powers other so-called ‘grid in a box’ solutions on the market.
Additionally, EV-OG offers a “drop in solution which can be moved to another site if it didn’t prove to be successful”, he says.
