DoE Awards Siemens $1.6 Million Research Grant to Develop Electrical Vehicle Charging Infrastructure

NORCROSS, Ga., March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Siemens announced it was recently awarded $1.6 million in development funding from the Department of Energy (DoE) to support research aimed at significantly reducing the current costs of electrical vehicle (EV) chargers and developing "smart" charging capabilities that support power grid efficiency and consumer demand. The grant, awarded to Siemens Corporation, Corporate Research and Technology (SCR&T) will be supported by nearly $750,000 in matching research funding—an investment shared with Siemens Low Voltage Electronics, the group responsible for Residential Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment and a business unit of Siemens Infrastructure and Cities.

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The research funding is intended to provide manufacturers a financial incentive to set aside 'winner-take-all' competitive imperatives and set a clearer path to align commercial EV charging technology development that supports integration with the power grid and ultimately provides substantial benefits to consumers. Collaborating with Siemens in the overall development effort are Duke Energy and Ford Motor Company who will focus its efforts on validating concepts intended for their respective industries and markets.

The research is also intended to help utilities manage the transition to a national EV charging infrastructure and the growing demand it would place on the grid and generation capacity. In addition to validating concepts, Duke Energy will provide input and help guide communications development. This will ultimately provide ways for utilities to manage increasing demand without having to add costly generation and distribution capacity that would be passed on to consumers and increase carbon emissions.

Ford and Siemens have a long history of shared EV development, Siemens technology being present in their early hybrid and all-electric designs. Car manufacturers have made a huge investment in EVs, but the market can't reward this investment unless deployment expands. Deployment can't expand unless demand grows by consumers.

According to the DoE, the intent of the research grants is to improve the functionality and affordability of electric vehicle chargers. In addition to supporting energy security, said U.S. Energy Secretary Steve Chu, "Developing smart electric vehicle chargers will provide more options to consumers and accelerate the build-out of the charging infrastructure in ways that strengthen the grid."

"The government's investment will expedite collaboration," said Barry Contrael, director of Low Voltage Electronics for Siemens Infrastructure and Cities. "If any company were to endeavor to go it alone, they would have to create and let the market accept or reject solutions for all the possible combinations of EV chargers, utility communication protocols and networks that exist. The resources required to take on this task would be prohibitive, even with companies like Siemens that have the necessary scaling and infrastructure. By teaming up, the companies chosen by the DoE will be able to develop standardized solutions faster and at a greatly reduced overall cost."

About Siemens
Siemens Infrastructure & Cities Sector, with approximately 87,000 employees worldwide, offers sustainable technologies for metropolitan areas and their infrastructures. Its offerings include complete traffic and transportation systems, intelligent logistics, efficient energy supply, environmentally compatible building technologies, modernization of the way power is transmitted and distributed, and smart consumption of electricity.  The sector is comprised of the Rail Systems, Mobility and Logistics, Low and Medium Voltage, Smart Grid and Building Technologies Divisions as well as Osram Sylvania.  For more information, visit www.usa.siemens.com/infrastructure-cities

The Siemens Low and Medium Voltage Division serves the entire product, system and solution business for the power distribution infrastructure of residential, commercial, industrial and utility markets. The division offers a wide-ranging portfolio of power distribution and circuit protection products, covering the range from 120 V to 38 kV. It includes circuit breakers, switches and MV motor controls as well as switchboards, switchgear, busway and busduct, power panels and standby power products. The division's protection and control offering encompasses power monitoring systems, electronic circuit protection, distribution automation and Smart-Gear® - Power Distribution Solution. Additionally, the division supplies energy-efficient solutions for the integration of renewable energy. For more information, visit www.usa.siemens.com/lowmediumvoltage

Siemens Corporate Research and Technology
Siemens Corporate Research and Technology based in Princeton, New Jersey, USA, is one of several Siemens Corporate Technology research and development centers worldwide. Since it was founded in 1977, its people have transformed research into practical, innovative solutions and services to support Siemens broad range of businesses. For more information, visit www.usa.siemens.com/research.

SOURCE Siemens