CharIN
responds (leading global association with over 300 members) dedicated to promote interoperability based on the Combined Charging System (CCS) as the global standard for charging vehicles of all kinds.
"The global EV industry cannot thrive with several competing charging systems. CharIN supports global standards and defines the requirements based on the input of its international members. CCS is the global standard and therefore focuses on international interoperability and, unlike NACS, is future-proofed to support many other use cases beyond public DC fast charging. Early, unconsolidated announcements of changes create uncertainty in the industry and lead to investment obstacles.
Further, CharIN also
does not support the development and qualification of adaptors for numerous reasons, including the negative impact on the handling of charging equipment and, therefore the user experience, the increased probability of faults, and effects on the functional safety. There are also a variety of technical challenges related to lower current ratings, variations of electrical requirements,
and mechanical loads caused by the weight of the adaptor which may lead to wear and mechanical malfunctioning of the vehicle inlet."
Not exactly supporting the NCAS standard especially with the comments following:
"For example:
- More than 300 domestic and international CharIN members are using or investing in CCS.The majority of major domestic and international automakers are using and supporting CCS, including Audi, BMW, Daimler, Ford, General
- Motors, Honda, Hyundai/Kia, Lucid, Lotus, Mazda, MAN, Mercedes-Benz, Navistar, New Flyer, Nikola, Nissan, PSA Groupe, Proterra, Renault, Rivian, Scania, Stellantis, Subaru, Suzuki, Tata Motors, Tesla, Toyota, Volvo, and Volkswagen.
- In the U.S., CCS is used in over 50 passenger vehicle models, with more coming soon. The anticipated volume of these vehicles will exceed a single NACS supplier volume soon.
- Charge point operators, infrastructure/component suppliers, electric utilities and oil companiesrely on CCS with high open market dynamics.
- The charging ecosystem is still nascent and requires certainty around CCS to be confident ininvestments. Every deviation from CCS will impact market traction.
- The Combined Charging System can connect to all AC charging stations without an adapter viathe J1772 standard.
- Worldwide, there are 81,000 DC fast chargers using the CCS connector, compared to 45,000Tesla Superchargers according to data published by CharIN and Tesla.
- In North America (including the U.S. and Canada) there are 22,262 CCS connectors compared to22,128 Tesla Supercharger connectors and 204,253 J1172 connectors compared to 16,009 Tesladestination connectors, according to recent PlugShare data (includes public and restricted use).
- CCS cables and connector assemblies are NRTL recognized, which makes it easier for EVSEmanufacturers to adopt the standard and build equipment.
- The CCS standard has been developed with full backward compatibility ensuring earlyinvestments are relevant to the growth of the industry, unlike other proprietary standards,including NACS.
In addition to the global dominance of CCS, it is important to note three additional facts:
1) NACS is not a standard
NACS is not a published or recognized standard by any standards body. For any technology to become a standard it has to go through due process in a standards development organization, such as ISO, IEC, and/or SAE. Such a process is collaborative and enables all interested parties to contribute their ideas.
The current CCS standard, including connectors and related communications protocols, is a true international standard that has gone through the standardization process. Any newly introduced idea, including a mechanical improvement to the existing CCS connector design, would have to follow the same process before the industry can safely adopt it. There is a significant chance that what is ultimately approved in the standards development process may not align with what is currently proposed.
2)
This announcement is a proprietary implementation between two automakers and should not re-open eligibility decisions on public infrastructure funding
Public funding must continue to go towards open standards, which is always better for the consumer. Public EV infrastructure funding, such as the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Program, should continue to only be approved for CCS-standard-enabled chargers per federal minimum standards guidance.
3) Recent activities and announcements will address concerns about charger reliability
CharIN joined the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation and the National Laboratories to support the launch of the National Charging Experience Consortium. The Consortium will address charger interoperability and reliability issues in public CCS deployments, which is appropriate to address jointly as an industry. Additionally, CharIN will announce other major interoperability initiatives in the coming weeks, including upcoming interoperability testing events. The entire EV industry should double down on activities to support public fast charging for the long-term."
