future. As TURN notes, “[t]his reflects the industry trend and consumer preference of moving towards faster charging (along with improving battery technology) and the related ratepayer risk of stranded or underutilized assets.” TURN notes that VW’s investment in DCFC will be at power levels ranging from 150-350kW. Though more expensive on a per site basis today, establishing higher capacity infrastructure mitigates the inevitable future cost of upgrading supporting distribution infrastructure to higher power levels. TURN suggests PG&E should ensure all make-ready infrastructure installed through the Fast Charge program can support 120 kW or higher powered EVSE, citing a study of Tesla superchargers. As ChargePoint notes, 150 kW better aligns with current trends in DCFC design, so while we support TURN’s recommendation to install infrastructure capable of higher power levels, we recommend PG&E install make-ready infrastructure to support 150 kW or higher power level EVSE for sites that support corridor charging. Corridor charging, where customers stop to charge during a trip, is the most likely to use higher charging levels in the future, as minimizing charging time during a trip will be important to driver experience. Site hosts should not be required to install an EVSE of 150 kW or higher, but as ChargePoint notes, “there is no risk of ‘stranding’ make-ready infrastructure built to support higher power DCFC technologies, and there is value for ratepayers in considering emerging trends in EVs and EV charging technologies.” Even if the site host chooses a higher capacity EVSE, “[a] charger’s ability to deliver power exceeding the on-board capacity of the vehicle using the charger does not mean that the EV cannot use the charger.” PG&E states that a cost contingency of 25 percent is needed to account for unforeseen costs associated with the significant site variation that may arise in
future. As TURN notes, “[t]his reflects the industry trend and consumer preference of moving towards faster charging (along with improving battery technology) and the related ratepayer risk of stranded or underutilized assets.” TURN notes that VW’s investment in DCFC will be at power levels ranging from 150-350kW. Though more expensive on a per site basis today, establishing higher capacity infrastructure mitigates the inevitable future cost of upgrading supporting distribution infrastructure to higher power levels. TURN suggests PG&E should ensure all make-ready infrastructure installed through the Fast Charge program can support 120 kW or higher powered EVSE, citing a study of Tesla superchargers. As ChargePoint notes, 150 kW better aligns with current trends in DCFC design, so while we support TURN’s recommendation to install infrastructure capable of higher power levels, we recommend PG&E install make-ready infrastructure to support 150 kW or higher power level EVSE for sites that support corridor charging. Corridor charging, where customers stop to charge during a trip, is the most likely to use higher charging levels in the future, as minimizing charging time during a trip will be important to driver experience. Site hosts should not be required to install an EVSE of 150 kW or higher, but as ChargePoint notes, “there is no risk of ‘stranding’ make-ready infrastructure built to support higher power DCFC technologies, and there is value for ratepayers in considering emerging trends in EVs and EV charging technologies.” Even if the site host chooses a higher capacity EVSE, “[a] charger’s ability to deliver power exceeding the on-board capacity of the vehicle using the charger does not mean that the EV cannot use the charger.” PG&E states that a cost contingency of 25 percent is needed to account for unforeseen costs associated with the significant site variation that may arise in
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