New App Facilitates Sharing of Private EV Charging
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Electric vehicles (“EVs”) are poised to take over the roads within the next a decade or two. However, that dream won’t become a reality until we address one of the electric vehicle’s biggest challenges: insufficient charging infrastructure. Incentives and rebates from utilities, vehicle dealerships and the federal government have made EVs much more affordable, and in the long run, they cost less to fuel and maintain. Still, plenty of drivers won’t make the switch because they worry about running out of power in the middle of nowhere, miles from the nearest charger.
Range anxiety is a major issue, and while installing more public chargers will help alleviate it, drivers don’t have to wait for such a massive project to be complete before choosing to drive an EV. Thanks to a sharing app, drivers can gain access to a network of private chargers rented out by homeowners and businesses. At the moment, the most suitable charging option is installing an EV charger at home for overnight charging, although charging at work or public stations are viable options.
But not everyone has a garage to facilitate overnight charging, and EVmatch is designed to help such individuals. The app allows EV owners and businesses to earn a passive income by renting out their EV chargers on a reservation basis. The California-based start-up behind the app has a network of about 500 peer-to-peer charging stations in more than 12 states. The app allows drivers to find a charger, reserve a time to use the charger and pay for the service.
According to EVmatch founder and CEO Heather Hochrein, the app was based on ideas she developed while working on her master’s thesis project at UC Santa Barbara. A long-time clean-technology and energy-efficiency expert, she started EVmatch back in 2016 with the goal of reducing the barriers to widespread adoption of EVs and making them more accessible to drivers who couldn’t charge at home overnight. This includes people who park in the street or those whose landlords won’t install EV-charging infrastructure on their premises.
These drivers account for 30–40% of the population in major cities, Hochrein says, and that number is even higher in China and Europe. As electric vehicles become more affordable and EV makers introduce longer-range models, this population is bound to increase. EVmatch enables these drivers to charge their cars even when they don’t have access to a private charger. All a user has to do is download the free app, create an account and state the specific EV you want to fill up.
Once a user finds a charging station that aligns with their location on the map, they make a reservation and choose a specific time; they then receive the address of the charging facility. The average cost of a charge ranges from $1–$2.50 per hour. Drivers aren’t allowed to enter the host’s garages or homes.
The nearly endless opportunities in the electric vehicle industry have attracted a large number of players. One such player is Clean Power Capital Corp. (CSE: MOVE) (FWB: 2K6A) (OTC: MOTNF), a company looking to capitalize on the need for renewable energy, especially hydrogen fuel cells.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Clean Power Capital Corp. (CSE: MOVE) (FWB: 2K6A) (OTC: MOTNF) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/MOTNF
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