Utility coalition invests in EV charging firm Greenlots

As more utilities wake up to the consumer and corporate hunger for low-carbon energy and transportation alternatives, more are moving proactively to ensure that they’re not left behind. One of the biggest signposts yet came Tuesday in the form of a "significant investment" by Energy Impact Partners (EIP) in nine-year-old electric vehicle charging company Greenlots.

Although the amount of the infusion wasn’t disclosed, EIP CEO and managing partner Hans Kobler described it as a "meaningful commitment from the fund," which was established to invest in companies that are creating technologies or services that optimize energy consumption or that contribute to sustainable generation.

The companies behind EIP include these global utility and power companies: Southern Company; National Grid; Xcel Energy; Ameren; Great Plains Energy; Fortis; AGL; Avista; Madison Gas and Electric; TEPCO; PTT Public Co.; OGE; and Transcanada.

All of these organizations have a vested interest in the rollout of EV charging infrastructure and could benefit from new services as this mode of transportation becomes more prevalent.

Kobler说：“这将使他们更接近客户，并且要对这些事情的发展方向保持敏锐也至关重要。”“负载将是巨大的。……以错误的方式完成，这可能是对系统的巨大压力。”

Utilities are in one of the best positions to have a greater role in the deployment of (EV) infrastructure.

Some utilities, such as Italy’s Enel, are already testingtwo-way EV charging servicesin collaboration with software startup Nuvee. The idea is to turn EV batteries into energy storage devices in periods when demand on the grid is high and the vehicles aren’t being used, allowing them to charge when power is more abundant.

EIP evaluated a number of EV charging technologies before it decided on Greenlots. One of the biggest deciding factors — aside from the company’s existing relationships with utilities such as Avista, Southern and Southern California Edison — was that its technology is "open." In English, that means that it works with many sorts of EVs. Los Angeles-based Greenlots also has formal partnerships with BMW, Ford, Nissan and Kia Motors.

Greenlots made a strategic decision to work with others to propagate its technology rather than trying to build out a third-party network on its own, said Greenlots CEO Brett Hauser. "Utilities are in one of the best positions to have a greater role in the deployment of the infrastructure," he said. "Understanding what is happening with that load is critical to understanding what’s going to happen with your infrastructure."

Greenlots成立于2008年，在新加坡成立，专注于在北美建立其业务，并将其总部转移到洛杉矶。霍瑟（Hauser）估计，它的技术落后于该市场中部署的快速充电站的三分之一。该公司没有透露有13个国家存在的13个国家 /地区安装了多少个电台。实际上，它的“品牌”不一定在其控制的充电器上。

例如，俄勒冈州和华盛顿州的西北公用事业Avista被加拿大的Hydro One收购，Whitelabels The GreenLots技术，并将其作为商业和住宅客户的服务出售。Its pilot plan, announced in June 2016, called for the installation of about 275 charging stations.

Greenlots’ previous backers include Asia Cleantech Capital, SBI Group, the Singapore Economic Development Board and Tembusu Partners. But Hauser didn’t disclose the total amount of money the company has raised. The new money will go toward research and development and grid integration projects, he said.

As a result of the EIP investment, Greenlots is adding two directors: Kevin Fitzgerald, the coalition’s chief utility officer; and Philip Jones, a former commissioner of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission.

This is EIP’s first investment in an e-mobility company since it was established about a year ago. The size of the fund isn’t yet a matter of public knowledge, but so far it officially has backed these companies aside from the new investment in Greenlots:

• Arcadia Power, a service allowing consumers to request that their power comesfrom renewable sources
• Autogrid，销售软件和服务以管理分布式能源
• CIMCON Lighting, creator of a wireless LED lighting and sensor platform
• Enchanted Rock, a natural gas microgrid operator
• SparkFund, an energy-efficiency service company
• Sense, an app that monitors家庭能源消耗
• OpusOne, a grid resource management platform
• PowerPhase, a maker of "advanced aerothermal" gas turbine technology

Stay tuned for other mobility technology investments that could play a role in the rise of EV infrastructure during 2018 and 2019.