A new app has been launched by Crowd Charge which aims to help EV drivers save money on electricity costs, and make greater use of greener energy.
Crowd Charge is able to recharge a user’s electric vehicle at the cheapest and greenest time of day, depending on their current energy tariff. The app works in real-time and shows how much electricity is used by an EV, plus the cost of electricity.
The app’s developers reckon the app can potentially save up to 30% on an EV owner’s electricity costs. On average, this can save £20 – £30 a month, and between £240 and £360 a year.
The Crowd Charge app works with any EV and any charge point – should data be provided – any energy supplier, any tariff.
Smart charging trials with 350 EV users on the three-year Electric Nation project were managed by Crowd Charge. The new app is able to move beyond just smart charging, and also work with vehicle-to-grid (V2G) charging systems. By selling electricity from their EV back to the grid at times of peak demand, V2G could bring drivers an additional £500 a year.
The Crowd Charge platform is able to connect and manage large numbers of EV batteries using V2G chargers, meaning they can act as one large battery to support the grid. This will help avoid the need for non-renewable energy sources to be used at times of peak energy demand.
Crowd Charge was developed by DriveElectric, which wanted a system to make sure its customers could always charge their cars, even as the number of EVs rise.