“Who’s Saving the Planet?” Podcast Interviews Gustavo Occhiuzzo

EVCS co-founder and CEO Gustavo Occhiuzzo recently spoke on the “Who’s Saving the Planet?” podcast about the electric mobility revolution and what we as a company are doing to help realize a truly carbon-neutral future. During the conversation with hosts Anthony Noto and Jessica Miles, Occhiuzzo made several critical points that help listeners understand where we are now in that mission, the obstacles we face, what EVCS has done to overcome those obstacles, and what we can do better as a global community. Here are some of the most prescient points:

‍

Committing to Electric

Occhiuzzo points out that approximately 20% of drivers who have owned hybrid electric or full electric vehicles in the past subsequently reverted back to gasoline-powered vehicles. That signals a failure by the EV industry to retain its customers – to generate “EV loyalty,” so to speak. According to a recent Enel X article (https://evcharging.enelx.com/resources/blog/638-breaking-the-barriers-to-ev-adoption-what-your-business-can-do-to-help), the two largest barriers to creating this loyalty are limited EV charging access at MUDs and range anxiety. EVCS aims to address this conundrum by making charging stations much more ubiquitous at MUDs, businesses and public spaces.

‍

Funding Drives Expansion

The expansion of new technologies in the marketplace is often hampered by a lack of available funds, and electrified transportation is no different. Occhiuzzo notes that EVCS’s ability to expand has been fueled by government subsidization, and where our presence is most prolific is in places where subsidies are most abundant. Therefore, one of the key ways EV drivers can help us expand infrastructure is by supporting government subsidization measures like cap-and-trade or renewable energy grants across more areas of the country.

‍

Addressing the Lag

Currently, the installation of EV charging stations significantly lags EV auto manufacturing. Occhiuzzo notes that while we’re on track to see 1.5 million EVs on the road by 2030, we’re not yet on pace to see a requisite number of chargers to service such vehicles. Even in LA, there are about 100 EVs for every one public charging station. The impending bottleneck caused by this gap will continue to stifle more robust EV adoption. He admits that we can’t do it alone and that more installers will be necessary to address the type of goals vocalized by California governor Gavin Newsom and the Biden administration.

Occhiuzzo founded ridesharing company Green Commuter

‍

Partnering with Utilities

We are witnessing an increase in energy efficiency across multiple sectors, from retail products to smart homes, while the transportation industry struggles to keep up. But once it does, says Occhiuzzo, we will need buy-in from utility companies that must shore up their grids to handle the additional load and ultimately find ways to generate power from renewable resources. He acknowledges that this process will likely take 10 to 20 years, but that, in the meantime, EVCS has been buying its electricity from renewable energy producers (even ones that are hundreds of miles away) through certificates that offset electricity generated locally by fossil fuels.

‍

Carbon Neutral vs Carbon Negative

Occhiuzzo declared our goal to be more than just reaching carbon neutrality; it’s actually reducing the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere by replacing current infrastructure with clean energy technologies that amount to becoming “carbon negative.” In addition to our essential mission of installing more chargers, we have engaged in efforts to reach this goal by working with utilities on issues like demand response, battery storage and V2G technology that mark the future of the EV revolution.

You can listen to the podcast episode in its entirety here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0NEFTuZ6M78Ics5RPsuFqj?si=T27kkqnlR2ON0lKaZCu4yw&dl_branch=1&nd=1

‍

Back

Top 10 Reasons Why Mass EV Adoption is Inevitable

According to evadoption.com, EV sales are expected to grow from 3.4% of all new auto sales in 2021 to 29.5% in 2030. In fact, they cite several models that forecast explosive growth in EV ownership across the US over the next decade. See the full sales forecasts here complete with bar charts and supporting data: https://evadoption.com/ev-sales/ev-sales-forecasts/. While skeptics might pooh-pooh these projections as overly optimistic, we believe they may actually fall short of the eventual reality. Of course, only time will tell, but below are our top 10 reasons why we believe EVs will be as commonplace as microwaves come 2030.

Installation of the Month (July 2021): LADOT Lot 657

One of our main goals has been to install charging infrastructure in underserved communities, especially urban population centers that are key to our mission of wider EV adoption. Los Angeles is rife with such neighborhoods, where low-income families who wish to participate in the greening of society cry out for cost-effective ways to be part of the solution. Lincoln Heights, one of the oldest sections of the city, is a prime example. The densely populated area boasts numerous Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander groups who have expressed interest in electric mobility, but historically lacked access to the requisite charging stations. Moreover, with a median age of just 24, Lincoln Heights is brimming with younger generation Angelenos who have already embraced the idea of sustainability, but simply need the opportunity to take action.

West Coast Electric Highway to Receive Extensive Upgrade from EVCS

ARCADIA, Calif. (August XX, 2021) – EV Charging Solutions (EVCS), one of the largest electric vehicle (EV) fast charging network operators on the West Coast, today announced that they are approved and funded by the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) to upgrade 44 and add three new electric vehicle charging stations on the Oregon portion of the original West Coast Electric Highway (WCEH). Eleven of the 47 stations will be called “superstations” and will include three DC fast chargers and one Level 2 AC charger. In all, more than 100 charging ports will be upgraded or added.

Is Policy Action Alone Enough to Reach Net Zero by 2050?

Recently, BloombergNEF published a telling article titled, “Electric Vehicle Sales Set to Rise Faster Than Ever, but More Policy Action Needed to Get on Track for Net Zero.” The author raises many interesting observations about where we are now in the transition to electric mobility; where we’re projected to be in 10, 20 and even 30 years based on current trajectories; and what we need to do if we’re going to be net zero by 2050.

Auto Trends Magazine: Occhiuzzo Debunks 4 Misconceptions Surrounding EV Fast Charging Stations

Our co-founder and CEO, Gustavo Occhiuzzo, is quickly emerging as a thought leader in the world of electric mobility, becoming someone stakeholders can count on to demystify obscurities and address falsehoods surrounding the installation and application of charging infrastructure. Like any new technology, resistance to adoption is often based on fallacious notions, some of which may be perpetrated by those with a financial interest in competing technologies. Therefore, countering such notions with facts is crucial if both drivers and site hosts are to make an informed decision about EV adoption. Occhiuzzo most recently addressed four of the biggest misconceptions surrounding chargers in the article below for Auto Trends Magazine.