By Grace Olorunsola, Schneider Electric
THE energy conversation around buildings has been shaped by well-known priorities: reducing consumption, improving efficiency, integrating renewables and stabilising supply.
Now a new player is making a tangible difference to the way buildings consume energy: The electric vehicle. The African EV market is projected to grow to nearly US$6 billion by 2031, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of more than 50% in that period, according to reports.
Buildings are becoming a vital part of the e-mobility movement, which requires a new approach to energy management.
Why buildings are becoming the new charging hubs
If EV chargers operate without intelligence, they will simply draw power whenever vehicles are plugged in. As more drivers arrive and plug in, the load climbs higher and higher. Eventually, the building may exceed its subscribed maximum power.
This can trigger financial penalties, increased electricity costs or worst-case scenarios: overloads that trip supply and cause blackouts, not only impacting the chargers but – worst case scenario – shutting down the entire building.
Even with DC fast chargers available, which can reduce charging time to 15 to 30 minutes, the reality is that most EV drivers prefer to charge when they are already parked for extended periods.
EVs require time to recharge. Depending on the battery size, charging infrastructure and charging speed, an EV can take up to 10 hours to charge fully using AC charging.
This is why EV charging is naturally shifting into the built environment: homes, office parks, shopping centres, hotels and mixed-use developments.
EV charging changes the energy equation for buildings
A single AC charger can demand up to 22 kW. Multiply that by 10 chargers in a commercial building and the building’s electricity demand jumps dramatically.
If you add DC charging, buildings have to provide anywhere from 120 kW to 720 kW per charger, creating a level of demand that most existing building infrastructure is simply not designed to support without significant upgrades.
Smart charging – the missing link
EV chargers must become part of an integrated energy ecosystem, where the charger sits at the centre of multiple stakeholders:
- The building and its internal load profile;
- The electricity grid and its constraints;
- Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) such as solar PV and microgrids; and
- The EV drivers.
Load management: the key to EV-ready buildings
One of the most important capabilities enabling this future is dynamic load management.
In a building, there is always a maximum subscribed power limit. Smart load management ensures EV charging never pushes the building beyond this threshold.
Thus, instead of charging every vehicle at full power at the same time, a smart system monitors:
- The building’s real-time consumption;
- The available capacity remaining; and
- The number of EVs currently charging.
When building consumption rises, the system automatically reduces charging power across vehicles, sharing the available energy intelligently. When consumption drops, the system increases charging power again, ensuring vehicles still charge efficiently but without compromising the building.
EV charging and the rise of microgrids
As EV chargers become embedded into buildings, the role of DERs becomes more important.
Microgrids, solar installations and battery storage systems can support charging demand while improving resilience and reducing reliance on unstable grid supply, especially during peak periods or in regions where grid reliability remains a challenge.
The combination of EV charging, energy management systems and distributed energy is what defines the emerging energy landscape for buildings: decentralised, flexible, digitally managed and increasingly driver centric.
