As photovoltaic panels on the one hand and electric cars on the other become more widespread, their synergies will impose new habits, even new ways of thinking about commerce. To the advantage of charging costs, which could collapse in some public terminals. Charging stations could soon alert you via SMS of extremely low prices thanks to abundant local solar production. Our interview with two energy specialists from Baywa re: Prasanna Jayaratnam, development manager and Tristan Saramon, engineer and press officer.
Photovoltaic panels e electric car they are two technologies that are becoming very common and accessible, for individuals and professionals. So, 100% electric vehicles or plug-in hybrids it accounted for 26% of the 2023 market share for new vehicles, according to data from the Automotive Platform (PFA). For its part, the connection of new solar plants also set a record in 2023 with more than 3 GWp installed, according to Enedis.
And these two technologies have one obvious thing in common: they manipulate electricity. It is therefore already possible to power a vehicle from a photovoltaic, i.e. local, energy source. There is no longer a need to import electricity through the power grid from distant power plants, nor to consume fuel extracted from the ground in distant parts of the world. The benefits in terms of environmental protection and sovereignty are evident.
This possibility of locally producing the energy needed for daily travel also opens the door to a new economically rational paradigm for transport and commerce. Or even, let’s consider it, a path that could lead us to free electric charging for the individual.
Electric vehicles at the origin of a new cycle for photovoltaics?
« Today the sector is mature, but it can be shaken again by regulatory changes, such as during the 2011 moratorium. Furthermore, prices are becoming so low that they are strengthening the competitiveness of photovoltaic energy. We believe we are at the end of a cycle, and therefore at the beginning of a new cycle,” Prasanna Jayaratnam, head of solar development, electric mobility and storage for the energy company BayWa re, tells us
And this new cycle could be started by the explosion of new electricity suppliers for charging electric vehicles. Let’s recap: for the first electric vehicles, charging was done at home, by the owner of the vehicle who then purchased the electricity from his supplier. Then came the charging stations on motorway service areas, whose network developed very rapidly: according toavere-France, 99% of motorway service areas, or almost, were equipped with fast charging stations by 30 June 2023.
But now many other operators also offer charging stations: public car parks, company car parks, but also shopping centres. We cite for example Lidl, which, by the end of 2023, had installed nearly 4,000 charging stations. The companies thus reproduce, as regards electricity, the commercial strategy that had been that of these brands that installed service stations near their supermarket, such as Intermarché or Carrefour.
« The principle of the petrol station near the supermarket is to allow the customer to shop and refuel in the same place. The brand doesn’t make much money from full sales, but it helps attract customers. The same goes for electric vehicle charging: the vehicle charges while you go shopping. And charging can be offered at a much lower price than home charging,” Tristan Saramon, engineer and press officer at BayWare Solar Systems, tells us.
Electric and solar car, the perfect combination
And this is where solar comes in. First of all, the creation of photovoltaic shading structures on large outdoor car parks it is mandatory in France from 1 July 2023. Then, the sharp drop in the prices of photovoltaic systems makes it possible to predict electricity production at very competitive prices, starting from 0.05 or 0.06 €/kWh, for example, for residential homes. shadow. Which therefore allows us to guarantee the charging of electric vehicles at very low costs, the regulated basic tariff it is currently at €0.25/kWh.
And this is the key, as Prasanna Jayaratnam explains: “ Such low prices would make it possible to offer charging at prices much lower than home charging, even with an off-peak rate. In other words, it will be interesting to charge your vehicle at the supermarket, rather than at home. This will be a way for brands to attract customers, by offering low-cost or even free rates. This is a new profession that is emerging, around “point-of-use charging”. In other European countries, brands notify their customers via SMS of the possibility of free top-upswhen conditions are favorable. ».
Let’s generalize. Let’s imagine that many companies gradually equip themselves with both photovoltaic panels and charging stations – in the same set of works, among other things, to lower the overall price. Thanks to the low cost of photovoltaic electricity, companies attract new customers, attracted by the attractive price. These customers park their vehicle, then charge it during the time they spend at the business. These customers will then move on to the next task, charging their vehicle again.
« It’s a new paradigm.”Tristan Saramon tells us. “ You don’t need to fully charge your vehicle’s battery, you can charge it wherever you go, during the time you stay there. And this at very competitive prices, or even free. With the generalization of this process we can also imagine this businesses those who do not offer the top-up will be at a disadvantage. And, conversely, this may benefit more isolated businesses that have land advantages to install their own solar energy systems.. »
In France, a car travels about 12,000 km per year, or about 33 km per day. To travel them you need around 6 kWh, which recharging in a fast terminal would only take about ten minutes. In short, to recharge your car at a very competitive price you would only need to spend about ten minutes a day in a shop.
It will no longer be necessary to refuel, but to bottle
Going from one point to another collecting electricity to charge your car, without really thinking about it? Even with an urban and semi-urban lifestyle? And this at a very low price, low enough for the service that the businesses we are addressing can offer? This does not seem impossible, given the drop in prices of photovoltaic panels, or even batteries. At Baywa re, our interlocutors are convinced of this.
Prasanna Jayaratnam also tells us that this is not science fiction in any way. In some Asian countries, where the electricity grid is less dense than in France, the generalization of electric vehicles associated with solar electricity is a reality, because there is simply no centralized infrastructure that would have allowed us to do without it, in a context of very expensive fossil fuels. And given the pace of diffusion of charging stations and photovoltaic panels in France, it is not impossible that we are already living in science fiction without realizing it.
