The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) is supporting a project that will see ‘intelligent power sockets’ installed in selected apartment buildings nationwide to power Level 1 EV charging.
What’s The Apartment EV Charging Project Involve?
The “Accelerating EV Adoption by Unlocking Charging for Strata Residents” initiative is being led by NOX Energy. It will provide user-pays home EV charging access to residents of 16 buildings via installation of close to 2,000 of its Intelligent Power Sockets (IPS), which look like a standard power outlet with some added bling housing advanced features.
The total project investment is $4.78 million, including $1.51 million from ARENA.
NOX Energy’s website indicates its IPS hardware costs around $425 a pop and installation is usually in the range of $250 – $750. At the upper end, that works out to an installation cost of around $1,175.
But $4.78 million divided by 2,000 equals an average cost of $2,390. So, what gives? NOX says the buildings involved will requiring upgrades ranging from minor electrical work to full infrastructure retrofits, which help could explain it.
“These sites will deliver a comprehensive real-world test of EV charging in diverse strata environments,” states the firm. “Where rooftop solar is present, NOX Energy will test innovative load-shifting behaviours that encourage residents to charge during periods of high solar export, helping buildings boost self-consumption and cut charging costs.”
The project also involves resident surveys and monitoring performance data. Findings with actionable insights for strata communities, policymakers, and the EV industry will be published.
The ARENA funding has been granted under the Agency’s Driving the Nation Program, a $500 million initiative supporting cheaper and cleaner transport.
What Is Level 1 Charging?
Level 1 EV charging uses a general power outlet (GPO) and the charger usually included with electric vehicles. Also known as granny chargers, bricks or trickle chargers, Level 1 devices charge at 1.8 to 2.4 kW from a standard 10 Amp socket, adding around 10 kilometres of range per hour. It’s not a lot compared to hard-wired home EV chargers (Level 2), but for some EV owners it’s all they’ll need.
Learn more about Level 1, 2 and 3 charging.
What Makes Nox Energy’s IPS Different From A GPO?
- OCPP compatible
- Wi-Fi, LAN and mobile connectivity.
- RFID functionality.
- First-in/first-out and ’round-robin’ time-based load balancing
- Full visibility of all energy consumed with granularity down to the individual power point.
- Real time monitoring, immediately ceasing charging if problems are detected.
- App based and tap-and-go payments.
- The system accommodates fluctuating electricity prices during peak and non-peak hours.
NOX Energy says contact surfaces of the IPS have been tested to ensure 10,000+ plug cycles. The IPS is also waterproof and dustproof to IP56 and IP66 standards.
How Does The NOX Energy IPS System Work?
Once installed, users download the NOX Energy App and use that to scan the QR code1 on the IPS to start a session.
Charging can be constant, timed or scheduled.
Each user pays for the energy consumed during their charging session and the kilowatt-hour rate is set based on the strata’s electricity supply costs. The strata is also able to recoup costs for related infrastructure work with an added charge; dropping that charge once costs have been recovered.
For its role in all this, NOX adds a $0.05 – $0.10 per kWh (ouch!) tariff according to its website for maintenance, updates, and management system access. At the end of the billing cycle, the body corporate or management company is automatically reimbursed for the energy consumed.
“Our model removes cost and complexity for strata communities, providing affordable and accessible EV charging for older complexes and new builds,” said NOX Energy Chief Operating Officer Charlie Richardson.
NOX Energy isn’t the only local company offering such a solution — another is Alchemy Charge’s SmartPoint.
Learn more: Apartment EV Charging: Strata-Friendly Solutions For Residents
Footnotes
- The rise of “quishing” is a concern — where malicious QR codes trick people into visiting fake websites, downloading malware, or divulging personal and financial information. I’m assuming that even if a fake QR code sticker was placed over the authentic one on the IPS, it simply wouldn’t do anything when scanned from within the app. ↩
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