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EV Chargers at the Dealership: Meeting Automaker Requirements Without a Runaway Power Bill

By Ernie Delgado
· 4 min read

A car dealership with a glass showroom, solar carports over the inventory lot, a row of EV chargers, and a battery cabinet beside the building.
Illustrative image.

Many automakers ask dealers who sell electric vehicles to install charging equipment on site, usually a mix of Level 2 chargers and DC fast chargers. The chargers are the visible cost. The larger long-term cost often shows up later, on the electric bill.

What Automakers Typically Ask For

Each brand sets its own rules, so a store that carries several brands may face several sets of requirements. In general, they call for a specific number and type of chargers on the premises. Fast chargers can also require an electrical capacity upgrade, such as a new transformer or a new 480V line. Your own program documents have the details.

The two charger types are very different loads. A Level 2 unit ranges from 2.9 to 19.2 kW. A DC fast charger can provide up to 500 kW. Early fast chargers were often capped at 50 kW, and by 2021 most DC fast charging ports exceeded 50 kW, with some supplying up to 350 kW.

How the Added Load Shows Up on the Bill

Most commercial bills have two parts. Energy charges are based on how much electricity you use, in kilowatt hours. Demand charges are based on how fast you use it, in kilowatts. One California utility measures maximum monthly demand as the highest kW peak in any 15-minute interval, so a fast charger running while the showroom air conditioning is on can set the peak for the whole month. That utility also bases one demand charge on the higher of the month’s peak or 50% of the year’s highest peak, so a single spike can follow you for months.

Demand charges often make up 30 to 70 percent of a commercial customer’s monthly electric bill. At fast charging stations with low use, a Rocky Mountain Institute analysis found demand charges can be responsible for over 90 percent of a station’s electricity costs.

How Solar and a Battery Offset the Load

Solar and storage do different jobs. Research from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory on fast charging found that solar mainly reduces energy charges and works best when charging lines up with solar production. Battery storage is most useful against demand charges for spiky, low-use loads. Used together, they complement each other.

  • Solar carports over the lot. Parking canopies generate power and shade cars, using space the dealership already has.
  • A battery. It discharges when a fast charger starts, so the utility meter sees a smaller peak.
  • Managed charging. The Department of Energy lists practices such as reducing overlap with building loads and setting a power ceiling across multiple chargers, which can also reduce the need for upgraded equipment.

Public Charging as an Extra Revenue Source

Chargers open to the public can charge drivers for each session. Networked chargers let site hosts accept payment by RFID card, smartphone, or credit card. A site host that owns its stations pays for maintenance and payment transaction fees, and operating costs include electricity, demand charges, and any annual network fees.

Questions to Ask Before Choosing Equipment

  1. Can our electrical service handle the chargers, or will the utility need to upgrade service or equipment?
  2. Does our utility offer an EV rate for business customers? Some replace traditional demand charges with a monthly kW subscription and require a separate meter for the chargers.
  3. Can the chargers be networked and managed under a site-wide power limit?
  4. Will any chargers be public, and how will pricing, payment, and network fees work?
  5. Are solar and storage being sized together with the chargers, or added later?

How Solar Advantage Helps

Solar Advantage is an energy consultant. For a dealership, we review your bills, rates, roof or lot, and electrical service; align the right engineering, equipment, and contractor team from vetted providers; and compare charging, solar, and storage options side by side. We represent you through the proposal, financing, and contract, whether that is a PPA, a lease, or cash or a loan. A qualified, vetted contractor team, led by an engineering and construction partner, handles permitting and construction, and we stay your point of contact through the build.

Before you commit to chargers, tell us about the site and what you pay for power today. Request an energy review, and you will see how the new load and the options to offset it fit together.

Sources

This article is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Each project is unique, and all information is subject to change based on project requirements.

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