Pirate's Cove

By “we”, I mean all of us peasants, not the Elites forcing us to get an EV. The Elites will be in big fossil fueled luxury vehicles

The Future of EV Charging Looks a Lot Like an Airport Lounge

Charging an electric vehicle in the future increasingly looks like an experience somewhere between a truck stop and an airport lounge.

Most public chargers sit in parking lots, often three or four machines along the side of a hotel or grocery store. Drivers are exposed to the elements and — unless they need to go shopping — are basically stuck hanging out in their cars while filling their batteries.

But charging companies and automakers increasingly see a need for stations with amenities: restaurants, good bathrooms, comfortable furniture, and canopies that shield from the rain, snow and sun. After all, even the fastest chargers need a half-hour to top off your car — so you’d better enjoy the stay. The additional convenience could entice would-be EV drivers to take the plunge, adding fuel to the electric transition.

Two points: you really save money when you can charge at home. If you’re charging out and about the cost is pretty much like buying $3+ gas. Second, have they heard of places like Sheetz and Buc-ees? There are plenty of places out there. But, do you really want to constantly have to sit around at them? If the people investing in chargers, like the government, they would focus on putting chargers in at already existing places. Maybe Mayor Pete could have built more than 8 so far

This summer, Rivian Automotive Inc. turned a former blacksmith shop outside Yosemite National Park into a recharging lounge where drivers can sip free coffee while making their own trail mix from an ingredients bar. Or they can sprawl out on furniture made from used sleeping bags and browse books in an onsite library. There’s even a wall-sized display of climbing routes of Yosemite’s famed El Capitan rockface.

Eeewwww. Used sleeping bags? Yuck. In fairness, all 6 are CSS1 and fast chargers.

“Over time, charging is expected to become like the gas station model where you make little margin on the fuel, but profit on the other services provided,” Daoud said. “Ultimately, it’ll have to be paired with a convenience store to help improve the economics.”

Sounds fun sitting around, eh? Because that is what people will have to do unless they have a house they can install a Level 2 charger.

According to a 2022 BloombergNEF report, the global average cost of a 350-kilowatt fast charger is about $77,000, though the US is pricier. “Excluding Tesla, the US is the most expensive region for hardware,” BNEF analyst Ryan Fisher said, noting the rough cost is $150,000 per fast charger alone, including the hardware, grid and civils. He added that BNEF will have a full update of the 2022 analysis later this year.

How many want to install them at that cost when it will take a long time to recoup the investment?