On March 19th, 2024, headlines across online media in Singapore announced an agreement between telecommunications company Huawei and eVE, a subsidiary of Singapore’s Land Transport Authority, to launch ultra-fast electric vehicle chargers in the country by the end of 2024. Under the terms of the partnership, Huawei will introduce an ultra-fast 480 kilowatt (KW) charger, 300 KW more than the incumbent EV chargers, with the first station expected to be operational by late 2024.
Huawei claims its ultra-fast charger can fully charge an electric vehicle in 30 minutes. However, this claim is puzzling given that existing 180 KW direct current fast chargers provided by major operators in Singapore’s electric vehicle charging market can already charge most electric vehicles to 80% battery capacity within 30 minutes.
For a revolutionary charger like Huawei’s 480-kilowatt model, one would expect charging times to be significantly faster than existing technologies. A charger with nearly three times the power capacity should plausibly be capable of fully charging an average electric vehicle in under 10 minutes. This raises questions about Singapore’s readiness for next-generation ultra-fast charging infrastructure and the real-world performance potential of Huawei’s announced technology.
Disclaimer: TRIVE is an investor of Charge+, one of the largest operators of EV Chargers in Singapore. The writer is also a member of the board of Charge+. Opinions and analysis are drawn from mosaic theory based on external research sources and conversations with people in the EV charging industry.
Types of EV chargers available
For the uninitiated, there are two primary classes of electric vehicle chargers available in Singapore: Level 2 Alternating Current (AC) chargers and Level 3 Direct Current (DC) fast chargers.
The vast majority of electric vehicle charging stations in Singapore are Level 2 AC chargers, also referred to as slow chargers, which have power capacities of 7 KW, 11 KW, and 22 KW. These AC chargers typically require 4–8 hours to fully charge an electric vehicle’s battery.
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A growing subset includes Level 3 DC fast chargers, which are increasing in number. Their power capacities range from 50 KW to as high as 180 KW, located primarily at petrol stations. These DC fast chargers can charge an electric vehicle’s battery to 80 per cent capacity in approximately 30 minutes, even for the 50 kW DC charging speeds.
Charging speed is limited by the size of the EV and the EV onboard chargers
According to a news report on Oct 23, BYD, BMW, Mercedes and Tesla sold the most EVs in Singapore in the first nine months of 2023.
Looking at the models that they sell, the battery capacities of these models reveal a capacity range of 60 KWh to 101 KWh.
That means if you have a 60 KWh battery using a 60 KW DC charger, theoretically, you require 1 hour to get a full charge. However, it will likely take longer if you have a larger battery, say 100 KWh, and the DC charger is limited to charging at 60 KW.
I understand now there is an additional factor to consider — the EV’s on-board charger specification. BYD’s e6 model allows a maximum of 60 KW as regulated by its onboard charger, even though the battery has a capacity of 71 KW. This means even with a high-end DC charger of 180 KW (which is available in some locations in Singapore), BYD limits the inflow to 60 KWh, which means one would not benefit from the full 180 KW DC charging capabilities of the EV charger.
Having then 480 KW might just be a form of overkill at this stage, as even the top EV European marques are limited to an onboard charging speed of 120 KW. Will technology improve down the road for breakthroughs in onboard charging technology to match the DC charging speed?
According to a science article I read, and I quote — “There are a lot of innovations on the electrochemistry side that are still in the laboratory,” says Christopher Rahn, who co-directs the Battery and Energy Storage Technology Center at Penn State University. “They may be more expensive [and] maybe require different manufacturing processes. They’re not necessarily ready to be rolled out on a massive scale, but certainly, lots of researchers have some exciting results.”
It is my understanding that it is still premature to have an Ultra-fast DC charger when complementary technologies like battery absorption speeds have not caught up.
Cost of installation and ability to take ultra-fast DC chargers in the network
As previously mentioned, the majority of electric vehicle (EV) chargers in Singapore are Level 2 AC chargers, also known as slow chargers, with power ratings of 7, 11, and 22 kilowatts (kW). These AC EV chargers typically require 4–8 hours to fully charge an EV.
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There are two main reasons why more Level 2 AC chargers exist in Singapore. First, AC chargers have lower installation costs compared to direct current (DC) fast chargers due to the less expensive hardware required to deliver EV charging.
Second, energy capacity is a consideration. DC fast chargers consume significantly more energy during charging, which many buildings in Singapore lack the electrical infrastructure to support. For example, government HDB residential car parks typically only have infrastructure to power amenities like lighting and elevators. Installing DC fast chargers may require upgrading the electrical grid servicing these locations.
DC chargers draw substantial energy from the building grid
Therefore, DC fast chargers are commonly found in commercial and industrial facilities with larger electrical systems capable of accommodating high-power loads. Ultra-fast DC chargers rated at 480 kW would be unrealistic for most buildings, as they require dedicated sites with sufficient electricity supply, according to the report on ultra-fast charging.
Social trade-offs with an ultra-fast DC charger
Singapore currently benefits from a stable electricity grid. However, as a resource-constrained nation, accommodating increasing energy demands presents challenges.
Research indicates the average Singapore household consumes approximately 2.3 KW during peak periods. An ultra-fast EV charger drawing 480 KW at maximum rate equals the power used by 208 homes. With an estimated 1.4 million households in Singapore, 7,000 such chargers could match overall residential consumption.
Policymakers face the delicate task of equitably allocating limited energy supplies among competing needs. Strategic planning must balance supporting electric transportation while maintaining grid reliability and affordable access for all consumers. Careful management of infrastructure expansion and demand surge mitigation will be crucial to a sustainable, inclusive energy transition.
Nice to have, but maybe not too many
It is always exciting to hear science doing leaps and bounds, like having an ultra-fast DC charger providing a full charge to an EV in minutes. But going beyond the scientific, there are realities to face in economics and scarcity of resources. Perhaps it is best to consider the ultra-fast DC charger as a dream for now rather than an expectation of it to be the norm.
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This article was edited by Hypotenuse.ai, and ideas were expanded by ChatGPT4.
This article first appeared on TRIVE’s blog.
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Image credit: ChatGPT 4 and Dall+
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