ZipCharge reveal first portable EV Charger

ZipCharge have revealed their first portable Electric Vehicle (EV) charger, the Go. The Go is the first element of a global portable EV charging platform that combines hardware, software, machine learning and innovative ownership models to bring affordable, practical EV charging to more people than ever.

ZipCharge Go also creates an intelligent energy management platform that provides flexibility and resilience for the national power grid. Now well into the development phase ZipCharge is on track to deliver the first models to customers in Q4 2022.

Realising that widespread EV adoption would be hampered by the inability to charge near or at home, ZipCharge co-founders, Richie Sibal and Jonathan Carrier, identified and developed a solution. Using their decades of experience in automotive electronics systems engineering and product development gained at cutting-edge businesses like McLaren Automotive, Jaguar Land Rover, Lotus, Gordon Murray Group and LEVC – their answer is the Go.

ZipCharge Co-founder, Jonathan Carrier, said: “In light of the Government’s recent Net Zero Strategy: Build Back Greener manifesto announcement, never before has the automotive industry had cause to innovate so rapidly to help us reach a low carbon future. One of the key barriers to wider uptake of EVs is charging anxiety; the inability to charge near or at home. ZipCharge removes that hurdle and in doing so, will democratise EV ownership.”

ZipCharge Co-founder, Richie Sibal, said: “Our technical approach to engineering the Go as a lightweight, compact and safe charging solution, and then evolving that into an EV charging platform reflects our intention to combine the development of battery-based systems with the lowest future environmental impact possible.”

The ZipCharge Go’s power panel concentrates charging functions and status LEDs in a single location to simplify access and makes the Go easier to use, which is mirrored by the ‘scallop’ for the side grab handle. The front cover can also be personalised in a range of different colours and finishes, to match the exterior of your EV.

The lightweight ZipCharge Go power bank is the size of a compact wheeled suitcase which can be charged at home or elsewhere using a standard domestic plug at a lower cost per kWh of electricity when compared to public charging.

ZipCharge Go provides up to 20 miles (32km) of range, providing sufficient range for the average UK daily commute, in a little over 30mins, and can then be neatly stored in the trunk / boot, or at home.

Thanks to the bi-directional AC-DC inverter, the Go power bank becomes a local energy storage device that can arbitrage energy pricing through time of use rates and, when not in use, sell energy back to the grid at peak times. When hundreds of decentralised Go chargers are pooled together they form a virtual power plant that can supply demand side response services to help balance the grid, providing flexibility and resilience.

Image: courtesy ZipCharge

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