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Imagine that you are rushing home for Christmas in your new EV. Suddenly your EV is about to run out of charge on a deserted stretch. You look for the nearest charging station and drive there on the remaining charge. To your surprise, people are waiting in line as the charging ports are limited, slow, and power is unstable. There goes your Christmas plan!
Sounds like a scene straight out of a movie, right? But that is the sad reality for many EV owners today.
As we embrace EVs, we look forward to a reliable and fast charging experience. The Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) integrated EV charging facilitates this need for quick and efficient charging. BESS integrated EV charging is a system with a battery array that draws and saves energy from a multitude of power sources and provides high-power charging at a consistent rate.
But why is charging still one of the biggest pain points for drivers today?
Users need high-power charging, but it is still not reliably there
There is a growing requirement of high-power charging in the market. However, AC grid power limitations and high Capex needed for grid upgrade means that high-power charging infrastructure is not always available for you.
Today’s EV owners have access to home charging, which is convenient, albeit slow. Also, public charging infrastructure is often time-consuming because of low voltage connections, or comes with a long wait time due to an inadequate number of dispenser units. Some of the semi-urban and rural areas have an irregular supply of electricity, which makes the public charging experience sub-optimal.
A recent study by the Idaho National Laboratory highlighted that the majority of EV user dissatisfaction is because of charging issues (Chart from the study below).
[i]EV drivers, charge point operators (CPOs), and fleet managers struggle with increasing grid costs, and inconsistent charging patterns caused by peak load hours. Additionally, there is limited use of renewable energy with no option of supplying energy back to the grid during peak demand hours.
Then there is another aspect of payment app errors and payments in low/no network areas, which further lowers the experience for EV users.
So fast, reliable, and scalable charging solutions are required. But how do we ensure that?
BESS integrated EV charging solution enables reliable high-power charging for EVs
BESS integrated EV charging solution has been regarded as a solution to consistency and stability in EV charging experience. BESS integrated EV charging solution integrates with multiple grid and renewable energy sources, and stores energy for further use, making charging smarter, more efficient, and future ready.
So how does BESS integrated EV charging solution deliver you a superior charging experience? The answer is in its engineering design.
Here are the key advantages of BESS integrated EV charging solution
High-power charging every time
Using energy storage systems ensures that every time you plug in an EV, it gets high-power fast charging (Exicom’s Harmony boost provides: 400 KW per plugin). This reduces your wait time at the charging stations.
Leveraging the best of both worlds
BESS integrated EV charging uses multiple energy sources and maximizes renewable energy consumption. This solution can store energy from various sources, including renewable energy (such as solar and wind) and the conventional grid. This enables flexibility in energy sourcing and ensures availability when primary sources fluctuate. It stabilizes the energy from the grid, reduces outages, and reduces reliance on peak-power generating plants. Enabling utilization of renewable energy through efficient storage systems enables a greener tomorrow.
Bi-directional Storage and Retrieval
BESS integrated EV charging solution can supply energy back to the grid when demand is high, helping to stabilize the grid. This is important for the nation as the India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA) has projected that the energy storage capacity requirement from BESS in the year 2031-2032 will be 38 TWh with peak power demand estimated at 366 GWH.[ii]
Intelligent Choice of Low-Cost Methods
Advanced software and AI-driven energy management systems enable BESS to optimize charge and discharge cycles. This Intelligent control integrates solar and grid battery charging to enable off-time, off-grid charging to save electricity costs. Low maintenance (by almost 25%) costs also ensure low opex.
It also reduces the need for expensive grid updates, can be installed rapidly, and has low cabling/construction/transportation costs, leading to low Capex.
Dynamic Load Sharing
Dynamic load sharing between multiple plugs and dispenser units to share limited available power between multiple vehicles. This approach increases the efficiency of a charging station.
Built for tough conditions
BESS integrated EV charging solution is designed to withstand extreme weather conditions, such as high dust, humidity (5 % to 95 %) temperature (-40 °C to 80 °C), and noise environment on highways. Its IP65 liquid-cooled batteries and liquid-cooled power electronics ensure maximum reliability, and a long lifespan. It also has a self-contained heat exchanger for zero internal/external air exchange.
“Exicom’s Harmony Boost, a BESS equipped EV charging station not only addresses the requirement of clean energy integration but also offers effective load balancing, enhanced scalability, cost savings, and a superior charging experience. We hope to continue our meaningful contributions to India’s green mobility…” – Mr. Anant Nahata , MD Exicom.
The next phase for BESS integrated EV charging solution is Wireless, Mobile, and Effortless.
BESS integrated EV charging innovation is taking place at a rapid pace. In 2023, one of Time Magazine’s Best Inventions was a mobile battery system (Mobile BESS)[iii]. Creating a mobile energy storage ecosystem can solve the issue of unavailability of charging stations by bringing the charging station to you (just like you call for roadside assistance). This ecosystem of energy availability would enhance the acceptability and adoption rate of EV.
Another innovation that is taking place in this field is Wireless EV charging. Even though the technology is in the nascent stages of implementation, the global wireless charging market for electric vehicles is projected to grow from USD 80mn in 2023 to USD 1.28 billion by 2030.[iv]
In Conclusion, BESS integrated EV charging solution delivers a smarter and greener EV charging experience
BESS integrated EV charging solution offers enhances scalability, is cost efficient and creates superior charging experience with a low carbon footprint. This can contribute to India’s reducing carbon footprint and provide great charging experience not only for the entire EV charging ecosystem in India and across the world.
Are you a charge point operator, EV fleet owner, or EV owner? Discover how Exicom’s cutting-edge solutions can enhance your charging experience. Contact us today, and our expert engineers will guide you through our innovative products!
An EV charging system using BESS is shown in the image below:
Key components of BESS EV charging solution
AC Grid –
This is a connection from the grid for power supply.
PV Modules –
This unit uses the energy sources from the sun to provide power to the battery system, which is stored and used when needed.
Battery system –
A set of batteries assembled is called a module, and multiple modules connected together is called a rack. These racks stacked together with management and control systems are housed in a box, which is called a battery system.
Auxiliary Systems –
Systems used for control and safety of the container and associated electrical components.
Load Control Grid (LCG) –
This is a key component, which uses intelligent technologies to monitor and control electricity consumption.
Maximum Power Point Tracking Voltage (MPPT) system –
This system/controller ensures that the solar panel operates at its peak efficiency regardless of changing environmental factors. This maximizes the energy extraction from a solar panel.
Load balancing Grid (LBG) –
This module distributes electricity in a grid and ensures that electricity generation meets the demand. This module maintains stability and prevents outages by managing demand fluctuations.
Bi-Directional (BIDI) –
BIDI is the module that is responsible for the two-way flow of electricity. This module is responsible for receiving the electricity from the grid but also supplying the excess energy back to the grid when needed.
AC2DC and DC2DC Rectifier –
Transforms AC to DC and ensures that DC current going to the batteries and charging stations is of the right Voltage/Amperage. Each rectifier is connected to one or more battery systems.
Intelligent Power switch Matrix –
This unit is responsible for supplying electricity to the charging stations. This unit takes into account the charging requirements of every charging station and distributes power accordingly.
Charging dispenser –
The charging dispenser is the unit with the cable that directly plugs into the EV.
[i] Source: Idaho National Laboratory and ChargeX report – June 2024
[ii] Economic Times - 21 Feb 2025
[iii] Business wire – 24 Oct 2023
[iv] Markets and Markets - 2023
Spotlight on mobility trends - McKinsey - 12 Mar 2024
