Dominion Virginia Power rolled out a program Monday that gives electric-vehicle owners a rate break if they charge their cars overnight.
The program allows Dominion Virginia Power customers to choose two options to charge their vehicles:
- Under the first option, car owners can allow the power company to install a second meter in their home. The second meter measures energy used only for recharging the vehicle. The cost for the meter is $2.90 a month.
- The other option allows for lower overnight prices for all household electricity use, including the recharging of vehicles. Dominion Virginia Power will replace the customer's meter with one that records energy use in 30-minute intervals, allowing the company to apply pricing rates at specific time periods.
The utility estimates that an overnight charge good for about 40 miles under the first option would cost 54 cents, and 51 cents in the summer and 61 cents in the winter under the second.
By contrast, the cost to charge an electric vehicle using standard residential rates is about $1.10.
The program is designed to test whether people will be encouraged to charge their vehicles during off-peak hour, which is typically overnight when usage is down.
The program ends Nov. 30, 2014. Each option is open to 750 people.
Dominion Virginia Power spokesman Tom Kazas said 17 people had signed up Monday by late afternoon.
The special rates will help offset the cost of owning an electric vehicle.
"Obviously it makes electric vehicles more cost efficient and increases their desirability. But the program also promises to help balance the growing demands of electric vehicles on our existing electrical infrastructure," said Michael Allen, a spokesman for the Virginia Automobile Dealers Association.
A major stumbling block for electric-vehicle manufactures and dealers is where the vehicles will be charged. The long-term goal is to build a network of charging stations in parking garages, retail centers and other public areas so customers can charge as they go.
Building a proper charging infrastructure is crucial if electric vehicles are going to be a real alternative to gas-powered cars, experts say.
That's especially true in the Richmond area, which is a key market for manufacturers who are introducing electric vehicles, including the Nissan Leaf, the Ford Focus, the Chevrolet Volt and the Toyota Prius. The cost for electric vehicles starts at about $30,000.
Last month, the Richmond Electric Vehicle Initiative received a $429,051 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to help develop a local network of charging stations for electric vehicles.
The initiative is a partnership of several organizations, including Virginia Clean Cities, Dominion Virginia Power, the Richmond Regional Planning District Commission and J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College.
How quickly consumers take to electric vehicles largely will depend on energy prices, said George H. Flowers, a professor of engineering at J. Sargeant Reynolds.
"One thing we need to be watching is gas prices," because higher gas prices spur interest in alternative-fueled vehicles and vice versa, Flowers said.
"As an engineer, I think energy is a function of price."
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