The following article originally appeared on PowerMag.com and features an interview with Kristen Helsel, CEO of Liberty Plugins, Inc.
The transition toward electrification has challenges, such as the need for more infrastructure to support charging of electric cars and trucks, and other transport vehicles. The residential and commercial and industrial sectors must consider the cost of new technologies for heating and cooling.
Utilities and power generators know there are issues with supplying enough electricity to meet the increased demand for power that will come from electrification, particularly at a time when other power customers—such as data centers—need more and more electricity.
Kristen Helsel, CEO of Liberty Plugins, provided POWER with insight about the importance of electrification, particularly in the automotive sector. California-based Liberty Plugins offers Charge Station Management Systems (CSMS) that enable business owners, property managers and facilities personnel to control who has access to electric vehicle (EV) chargers and what they pay for use.
Helsel noted, though, that electrification is key for more than just transportation. “I think the industry has advanced enough that the topics that must be addressed must be more specific than general EV topics,” Helsel said. “I think we need to focus on specific verticals or specific applications. There are decisions that must be made, and I think they’re shared decisions for the industry.”
Helsel continued: “For example, how do we solve the heavy trucking problem? How do we address the rural problem? There are interesting solutions out there and lessons to be learned for how we can do better in light of disasters like the Los Angeles fires. How do we make our infrastructure and technologies more resilient? It’s no longer a matter of if we’ll face these natural disasters but a matter of when, and when we do, how can we do better as an industry?”
POWER: How important is electrification to reaching decarbonization goals, whether for a municipality, commercial and industrial enterprise, utility, or other enterprise?
Helsel: Today, the path to total decarbonization is electrification across the board. The grid mix gets cleaner every year, as new renewable sources come online. Electrification is the way forward because it is the only way to leverage renewable resources and clean technologies to solve the climate crisis.
Kristen Helsel, CEO, Liberty Plugins
POWEROne thing we know, though it is often overlooked, is that supporting small efforts matters. When you think about what makes it feasible for the average person to replace their ICE (internal combustion engine) car with an EV, it comes down to convenience. Efforts like installing Level 2 EV chargers in city centers or in workplace parking lots make the adoption of electrification technologies like EVs more accessible. There are a million little battles like this along the road to full decarbonization and each one is critical. It is important as technology providers that we focus on simplifying the process of electrification as much as possible, to reach the most people and ultimately, to have the biggest and most positive impact.
There are a lot of difficult choices and problems to solve in order to achieve net zero; however, applying the knowledge we do have to simplify available solutions is how we can drive greater acceptance. We have buy-in and momentum from all the big players now; from legacy automakers, to utilities who are investing in powering the process, to fleets and industry players who are investing and saving money when they do. Now we just have to make it easier for regular people, who often are not able to install a charger at home, to do the same. We have to make it very easy for people to implement and for organizations to support their efforts.
POWER: How should entities look to accomplish their electrification goals? What technologies (for heating, cooling, etc.) should be embraced?
Helsel: Transportation is responsible for a massive double-digit share of the greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. Efforts to promote electrification must involve a plan to support the transition from ICE transport to EVs. For electrification to take off, it’s key that we make it as easy as possible for people to choose it on their own, and we do that (in part) by making EV charging cheap and ubiquitous.
When it comes to electric vehicles, that means investing in charging equipment and placing it where people spend a lot of time; such as at work, at home, at school or at a hotel. It doesn’t have to be complicated. A Level 2 charger powered by a common 240-volt circuit can recharge a vehicle in full overnight, or during the workday. Charge station management is such now that vendor lock-in is a thing of the past, and organizations that are making these investments have a lot more freedom. They can easily be connected to existing infrastructure and managed with software that makes it easy to handle different payment and use applications. If a company installs chargers at the office for their employees to use during the day, then the same systems can also enable secure public access charging outside of business hours.
Overall, we want to reduce the anxiety around transitioning to EVs and widespread electrification. To do that, it is important to make it easy for people to find charging when they need it, access it, pay for it, and then go on with their lives. And it takes a user-friendly interface to do that, which is one of Liberty Plugins’ main focus areas.
POWER: What should drive electrification? Should it be government policies, economic benefits, environmental benefits, or something else?
Helsel: Government policies and the passion of environmental activists were really important for kickstarting electrification. The early activists and engineers got this movement started, (and) the government has since done a tremendous amount to drive the adoption of solar, batteries, and now EVs and charging infrastructure. Today, there’s widespread, global agreement about the importance of migrating to electric vehicles and electrification—but more than that the economics are now evident. The early adopters and government have gotten us to a scale where the EV industry is nearly self-sufficient. A change in U.S. government policy around incentives would be an obstacle, but not an insurmountable one now.
As policy takes a back seat and users demand solutions that work for their wallets, we should listen to them and respond with solutions tailored to their concerns. Interest and demand from the public are what is driving electrification today. It’s time for all electrification tech providers to do their part to make sure people feel confident that they can charge their EVs when and where they want, seamlessly install solar panels on their homes, or adopt other electrification technologies.
POWER: In the current political climate, at least in the U.S., should we rely on government policies to push electrification—or should adoption be driven by market forces?
Helsel: The government has always been a partner in the process, whether to the automotive OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) or utility companies, but the industry has pushed past the tipping point. OEMs have bought in. Utilities know this transition is coming. People want to use renewables, and most agree we must do something about climate issues. One of the ways an individual can play a part in that is with EV adoption. The level of government participation is uncertain, but the industry itself has enough momentum to keep moving forward. If we listen to customers and give them what they want so that they can be comfortable and transition successfully, then electrification will propel itself forward with that investment.
POWER: How can electrification technologies help utilities manage electricity, and support grid flexibility?
Helsel: Despite being consumers of grid energy, we are awfully disconnected from the grid. That is, most of us don’t understand what can be done to make the grid work better. A great example is this: one of the best things you can do to reduce greenhouse gases at the grid scale is not to reduce demand, but to level or normalize demand. The demand on the grid is tied to our habits. We collectively consume lots of energy during the day, and little at night. If we were in a car together and had to drive 100 very hilly miles … driving slower would help a little, but it would be better if we could just cruise on flat terrain at a set speed. Smart, connected appliances, including EVs, allow us to flatten the demand curve and make the entire grid more efficient and more robust by using, or contributing energy, when it is most optimal and to everyone’s benefit.
POWER: Will the market for EVs continue to grow, even with (at least in the U.S.) more government support for fossil fuels?
Helsel: There’s a misconception that the EV revolution will stop or pause if there isn’t government funding. But as the years go on and people continue to electrify their homes and cars, that’s not a hard and fast rule. The cars are rolling off the line because people demand them, they simply make the best economic sense for nearly anyone with the ability to install a charger at home. We don’t believe that will change just because the president has changed. We’re a part of the global trend upwards with EV adoption and mass electrification in general.
That said, the roughly 30% of Americans who live in multi-family buildings have much less control over their own electrification journey. We won’t get to 100% if we leave these people behind, so it’s imperative that we continue to bring solutions to the market that allow these people to charge at work and in their shared parking lots so that they are able to choose an EV for their next vehicle.
—Darrell Proctor is a senior editor for POWER.
Here is the link to the article on POWER