The photo is sourced from pairedpower.com
This unit comprises photovoltaic panels of 4.6 KW capacity, one or two charging sets (depending on the layout) and energy storage devices up to 42.4 KWh. Electricity generated during the sunny hours is channeled to such storage devices, and their capacity is enough for an electric vehicle to run 370 km (230 miles) without recharging.
The cost of the unit varies from $28 K up to $78 K depending on the capacity of the storage devices and the number of charging sets. Similar to the assembly costs ($5 K), the costs may be paid off due to decreasing electricity consumption from the common grid: the average cost of electricity in the US constituted $0.126 per KW in January 2024. Hence, the maximum possible costs of purchasing and assembling the unit ($83 K) may be paid off after servicing 15.2 thousand of electric and hybrid vehicles.
The fact of decreasing the load on the common grid is very important, especially with account of rapid growth of the demand for electricity associated with EVs: in 2018, the electric and hybrid vehicles accounted for 0.04% of total electricity consumption in the US, but during 2023 their share reached 0.17%, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).
The only serious drawback of the unit is a rather small range of its operating temperatures below zero (not below -6.6 degrees Celsius). Hence, the unit may be used mainly in the warm regions, like in California (the leader of charging infrastructure development in the USA: by November 2023 the total number of the charging stations in the US was 173.6 thousand, and in California – 48.7 thousand (28%) stations, i.e., more than in any other state including New York (11.0 thousand), Florida (9.7 thousand) and Texas (8.6 thousand).
