Qmerit in Irvine has stepped up its efforts to have electric vehicle charging stations installed at commercial properties, joining the national effort to keep the growing fleets moving.
President Joe Biden on June 9 pledged to have 500,000 public charging stations for electric vehicles in place by 2030. The proposed standards dictate that a charging station be located every 50 miles along the interstate and no more than a mile off the highway.
Qmerit focuses on charging at homes, businesses and commercial locations, saying the projected supply of 5.6 million chargers in the public by 2025 won’t meet the demand.
Keeping electric vehicles sufficiently charged has become more important as they grow in popularity.
“The price points are coming down, which will continue to make these vehicles more accessible,” said Tom Bowen, president of comany unit Qmerit Solutions, which provides turnkey EV charging implementation products and services.
Irvine serves as Qmerit’s “customer service and solutions hub,” with 45 of the company’s 300 direct employees based here, while its top executives have relocated to Austin, Texas and Nashville, Tenn. to be closer to some of the company’s stakeholders.
Commercial Options
In the latest step to keep up with the demand, Qmerit has launched complete, ready-to-use EV charging options for commercial properties such as workplaces, multifamily residential facilities and hospitality venues.
It starts with a streamlined assessment process that makes it easier for property owners to get proposals and pricing estimates for EV charging projects.
Property owners use Qmerit’s proprietary online portal to complete a digital commercial assessment, providing information about their sites as it relates to EV readiness.
Qmerit then conducts an on-site evaluation.
From there, Qmerit develops and implements an end-to-end program that enables the property to meet the unique demands of its customers, employees, tenants or other stakeholders.
CRE’s Role
“Commercial real estate, with its scale and influence, can play a tremendous role in helping EVs go mainstream by adding critical capacity to the nation’s charging infrastructure,” said Tracy Price, Qmerit CEO and founder, early this month.
He said property owners are looking for a complete, ready-to-use “turnkey solution.”
“Qmerit hopes to spark a significant uptick in charging installations at commercial properties across North America,” according to Price.
BTR Partnership
In another move bolstering vehicle electrification, Qmerit has teamed up with BTR Energy of Washington, D.C., regarding ways to create revenue for California commercial properties by tapping into the state’s carbon trading program.
“What we’re looking at doing is providing as many opportunities for our customers to offset the cost of investment,” President Bowen said.
“The multifamily or commercial business owners that invest in charging infrastructure are in a sense then eligible to receive those credits that can be traded for a monetary value,” Bowen said.
That in turn can create an “incremental revenue stream for them to offset their investment costs,” according to Bowen.
This partnership combines Qmerit’s offerings with BTR’s ability to measure and reduce harmful greenhouse-gas emissions.
Commercial properties will be able to implement EV charging capabilities while also receiving revenue from low-carbon fuel credits, according to the company.
“For EVs to become mainstream, consumer or professional drivers can’t have it in their mind that they may run out of charge,” CEO Price said in March. “Charging capability has to become ubiquitous in order for EVs to cross the chasm.”
