UK start-up Evata has launched a new electric fleet charging platform based around the sharing of charging infrastructure, which the company says will cut total cost of operation by up to 30pc and hardware downtime by up to 73pc.
Evata allows fleet operators to share their depot-based charging infrastructure with select operators, or simply access others'.
The platform allows charging to be hosted by third parties and rented on a case-by-case basis by fleets. This will allow fleets to charge on an ad-hoc basis, including away from their typical repeated routes and deviate away from cycles arranged around charger availability.
Central to the start-up's offering is the ability for fleet operators to use third-party sites to host portable charging infrastructure, serving the operators' charging requirements, the company says.
Operators will be able to negotiate prices for charging, which are capped at £0.52/kWh ($0.65/kWh).
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The high cost per kWh coupled with the lack of ability to reserve charging slots has resulted in fleets seeking alternative means of charging their vehicles, Evata says.
"With fleets driven to decarbonise their operations, many find themselves limited to operating vehicles on certain routes, where the duty cycles permit electrification. It is for this reason that many fleet operators are waiting for longer-range models and calling for the acceleration of the public charging network," the company says.
“Present-day solutions result in fleets having limited options to easily charge vehicles at public facilities, hindering electrification plans beyond the 'low hanging fruit'," says Evata co-founder Shakeel Ali. "Ultimately, in the use case of complex duty cycles — vans, delivery trucks, commercial vehicles etc — they are required to shoehorn fleet operations into an existing model which is not suitable, nor economical, slowing the transition to electrification."
Evata says that with the efficiency and operational costs savings, its platform can provide a three-year return on investment for fleets, and that it is "laser focused on making fleet electrification the most financially attractive decision for businesses".
Ciaran has written about finance, politics and culture. He is passionate about e-mobility and what it means for our way of life.
Ciaran has a Masters in Ancient Philosophy from Oxford University.
