Plug In America's Joel Levin Weighs in on Future of Battery-Powered Vehicles

"And then the world starts to get interesting."

Joel Levin, executive director of Plug In America, made this candid statement in a recent interview with Utility Dive: Energy and Utility News. He believes the continuing decline in battery costs for electric vehicles (EVs) will soon dispel range anxiety concerns and allow EVs to become a practical and desirable frontrunner in the automobile industry.

Over the last decade, EV battery costs have fallen from $1,183/kWh to $135/kWh, dropping about 15% annually as batteries were manufactured to be smaller, more powerful and dense. This month, a historic milestone was achieved when a battery for electric buses in China dropped under $100/kWh. In the U.S., government and industry experts speculate that costs for passenger EVs could drop to $80/kWh by 2030—or sooner.

Read on to see how declining battery costs are key to speeding the adoption of EVs: http://ow.ly/BbQJ50CP6BR

Portable Chargers Offer Additional Peace of Mind for EV Owners

Incredible things are happening in Voltrek's neck of the woods—it's so phenomenal, it even aired on national television!

A Massachusetts-based company, SparkCharge, just rolled out a new portable charger for electric vehicles (EVs) called the "Roadie." Featured on ABC News's Shark Tank last week, this ultrafast charging system can generate 15 miles of range in just 15 minutes. The Roadie can be configured to offer up to 17.5 kWh of power, which translates to about 60 to 75 miles of additional range in between traditional charging pitstops. Currently, it is only available with a CHAdeMO connector (great news for Tesla drivers with adapters!), but a CCS option should be available soon. Here’s a great article from InsideEVs with even more info.

Portable EV chargers could really help to remove the barriers of EV adoption. Because our nation's EV charging infrastructure is still developing, some people struggle with "range anxiety" (i.e., concern about running out of a charge and getting stranded on the side of the road). Fortunately, disruptive technologies like the Roadie can offer additional peace of mind.