Aftermarket July/August 2022 Issue

A pparently two thirds of people laugh at jokes they don’t understand to fit in with their friends, with puns being the least understood format. Hopefully though, most people get the pun in the title of a report launched recently called ‘Connecting the Watts’. The report aims to highlight, and help address, the piecemeal approach to climate goals and net zero delivery in this country. The report focuses on green energy, so the idea is to connect the dots/watts/support joined- up thinking... We see what they did there. The need for joined-up thinking is especially relevant to the automotive industry. Aftermarket has already highlighted the poor ratio between vehicles and charge points in the UK, which the SMMT noted got 31% worse over 2020. The government responded with an announcement in November 2021 that it would install 145,000 charge points across England each year up to 2030. New legislation was also announced which will require large organisations such as hospitals and supermarkets to install charging points from next year. Unintended consequences The obvious questions being asked include how will the electricity for all these chargers be managed? Where will the electricity come from, and will it be clean? There are already reports of EV charging stations being backed up by diesel generators which sounds like insanity. The impact of this rapid rollout could have unintended consequences. Another report, this one from Versinetic, highlighted “the most significant shortages and industry 16 AFTERMARKET JULY/AUGUST 2022 BUSINESS www.aftermarketonline.net EV CHARGING INFRASTRUCTURE: WATT'S THE PROBLEM? While EVs are generally accepted to be the future of motoring, the need for charging infrastructure is still being discussed. Why is that? conditions threatening the charging infrastructure necessary to support 2030 electric vehicle targets.” Joined-up thinking must be applied Where sites are grid constrained, with an electricity connection which isn’t large enough to supply more energy, a battery storage system is the solution. Battery storage, or battery energy storage systems (BESS), are devices that enable energy from renewables, like solar and wind, or from the ‘normal’ grid supply, to be stored and then released when power is most needed. The National Grid has described battery storage technology as “essential to speeding up the replacement of fossil fuels with renewable energy. Battery storage systems will play an increasingly pivotal role between green energy supplies and responding to electricity demands.” A ‘no-brainer’ solution A BESS can be a cheaper and greener solution than upgrading network supplies to overcome grid constraints. What about the supply chain shortages highlighted in the Versinetic report though? This is where the dots really start to connect. Battery storage units can be made from used EV batteries, giving a vital second-life to the batteries. At the same time, they help solve grid constraints, and can supply green energy at EV charging points. This is the no- brainer. Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands are already doing it and a few places in the UK have seen the light. Dundee City Council named ‘Europe’s Most Visionary Electric Vehicle City’ was the first place in the UK to install BESS at EV charging points, with each unit being made from used Matthew Lumsden, CEO, Connected Energy