(SK E&S, 23.Mar.2022) — SK E&S is entering the US electric vehicle charging market. On 23 March 2022, SK E&S announced the acquisition of EverCharge, an EV charging solution provider in the US.
This is the first time a Korean company has acquired the management rights of an EV charging company based in the US.
Founded in 2013 in California, EverCharge is a charging solutions provider that manufactures EV chargers and operates charging stations. Currently, the company has installed and is operating 4,600 EV chargers across North America including the U.S. and Canada.
On 8 March, SK E&S made an official announcement that it will finance SK E&S Americas with $400mn to invest in energy solutions businesses in the US, which will be used to acquire EverCharge and make additional investments in the energy solution sector.
EverCharge provides expertise in scalable installation and deployment of EV charging in parking facilities including workplaces, multi-family communities and commercial fleet segments.
EverCharge was the industry’s first electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) to receive the California Type Evaluation Program (CTEP) certification required by the state for an EV charger. EverCharge’s chargers are connected by a mesh network that allows greater coverage than conventional Wi-Fi and works even in the harshest underground environments, allowing for reliable operations of chargers in parking garages and other locations.
Another aspect that makes the company more competitive is its capability of electric power load management. It enables 5 times more chargers to be installed and operated than traditional charging systems. An EV charger used to be installed considering its maximum power output, which resulted in limited electric circumstance and installation of a fewer number of chargers. This was the biggest pain point of EV users.
EverCharge uses “dynamic load management” to address this challenge. The solution is designed to effectively manage and control the electric power load of a building as well as to analyze charging patterns of EVs to efficiently allocate available power to EVs so that more chargers can be installed and operated with flexibility without utility upgrade.
“The EV charging solution including manufacturing, installation, service and aftersales service of chargers enables significant optimization for our customer base which is growing rapidly and ultimately, contributes to rapid deployment of EV fleets,” said Jason Appelbaum, CEO of EverCharge.
As of 2020, the total number of vehicles on the road in the US was approximately 240 million and of which, EVs accounted for less than 1% (1.74 million). The U.S. EV market is projected to grow remarkably by more than 15 times in a decade to 26 million by 2030. In addition, the EV charging infrastructure market is expected to grow fast at an annual rate of 27% on average from 2 million chargers in 2020 to 20 million in 2030, according to ICCT_International Council on Clean Transportation (July 2021).
SK E&S said this acquisition will help it to respond effectively to the rapid growth of the EV charging market in the US and it aims at growing into a “global top-tier energy solution provider” by connecting the business to its existing business.
With the acquisition of Key Capture Energy (KCE), a US grid solution provider, and investments in Rev Renewables, a US energy solution provider, last year, the Korean energy company plans to provide comprehensive energy solution service that offers grid, distributed energy resource and mobility all together in the US.
Increases in renewables energy power generation, EVs on the road, distributed energy resources and changing consumer usage patterns have presented emerging energy challenges and grid instability.
Energy solutions are expected to grow exponentially and as a new industry can address these challenges effectively by combining ESS (Energy Storage System) and AI (Artificial Intelligence).
“Entry into the US EV charging market is a starting point for SK E&S to be transformed into a carbon neutral energy optimizer as it declared,” Yu Jeong-joon, Vice Chairman of SK E&S said. He added, “I believe SK E&S will become a leading power solution company in the North American market within years as it leverages its energy solution business capabilities and synergy effects with SK Group.”
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