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Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are here to stay. A significant reduction in lithium-ion battery prices, increasing commitment from automakers to prioritize BEVs and supportive legislation are fueling a rapid growth in BEV customer acceptance. By 2040, it is estimated that 54% of new car sales, and 34% of the global vehicle fleet will be electric [1].<\/p>\n
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Functionality and competitive pricing play key roles in the global transition to BEVs, but electric mobility at mass\u00a0scale cannot succeed without the right charging infrastructure. Electricity consumption from BEVs is expected to rise from 6TWh in 2016 to 1800 TWh in 2040 \u2013 representing 5% of global power consumption in 2040. This projected electricity consumption would offset fossil fuel demand by 8 million barrels of transportation fuel per day [2]. In addition, electric vehicles will have a different \u201crefueling\u201d profile than traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles because BEVs are not required to head to the refueling station every time they\u2019re running\u00a0low on\u00a0energy. Rather, electric vehicles can take advantage of existing electricity infrastructure to charge whilst parked at home, work or\u00a0during errands \u2013 which on average amounts to more than 90% of a given day [3]. In other words, the weekly trip to the gas station will no longer be as relevant, and charging \u201con the go\u201d will mainly occur on long distance trips when driving time exceeds a vehicle\u2019s idle time.<\/p>\n
To stay relevant in an electric future, gas stations must adapt their supply chain and services. Currently, gas station rely on a complex system of pipelines, rails, barges and tanker trucks to deliver transportation fuels (gasoline, diesel, ethanol, biodiesel). In the future, this supply chain will be swapped out for electrons coming via the grid or via on-site renewable energy sources.<\/p>\n
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Royal Dutch Shell, one of the world\u2019s largest fossil fuel companies, is preparing for the required diversification beyond fossil fuels. Today, the company and its subsidiaries manage Shell gas stations across the world, and service more than 20 million motorist a day [4]. In an effort to accommodate their motorists\u2019 future needs, Royal Dutch Shell just revealed that they are acquiring NewMotion [5], a Dutch electric charge point and charging service provider. NewMotion has installed more than 50,000 charging locations across 22 European countries, and holds expertise in charging solutions for residential, commercial and enterprise purposes [6]. In addition to the NewMotion acquisition, Shell is rolling out \u201cShell Recharge\u201d to provide fast-charging services at select gas stations in the UK and the Netherlands. Shell has targeted 10 new charging stations by the end of 2017, and will continue expanding through 2018 [7]. Other countries are expected to follow, but Shell has not confirmed a specific European expansion plan [8]. Shell Recharge is mainly targeting long distance BEV travel, which requires fast charging stations to ensure a vehicle can be recharged in 20-30 minutes. Currently, Tesla is considered the most serious player in the fast-charging space with its proprietary Supercharger network. Since 2012, the electric vehicle manufacturer has built more than 5400 Superchargers to enable long distance electric travel across America, Europe, Asia and Australia, and the company is planning to double the network by 2018 [9].<\/p>\n
Acquisitions and small-scale charging station roll outs are all well and fine, but Shell must take big steps if they are to succeed as a leader in the transition from Big Oil to renewables. Deployment-wise, the company should ensure they grow beyond the first two \u201cpilot\u201d countries in an effort to build a network<\/em>, rather than individual test sites. As laid out above, the BEV charging cycle differs significantly from combustion vehicle needs, and to match their customers\u2019 needs, Shell must focus on innovation and stay clear of simply adapting the \u201cgas station\u201d model to electric vehicles. In other words \u2013 a change in supply chain should also lead to an overhaul of their gas station business model. To this end, the company will definitely gain valuable knowledge and experience from NewMotion, but should also seek advice from the most prominent player in the field: Tesla.<\/p>\n Longer term, Shell must focus on the energy production downstream of the charging stations. Current investments include a massive Dutch offshore wind project, and a solar plant fueling activities at an Omani oil production site [10]. Still, their renewable portfolio is peanuts compared to current oil production. A diversified renewable energy portfolio will help Shell remain relevant beyond peak oil.<\/p>\n Although the future looks to be electric, the scale and rate of technological advances will impact gas station supply chains and services. Can we rely on current estimates of BEV adoption rates? How will autonomous vehicles impact refueling needs? Are gas stations as we know them a dying breed?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Word count: 799<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [1] Bloomberg New Energy Finance, \u201cElectric Vehicle Outlook 2017, Executive Summary\u201d (PDF file), downloaded from BNEF website, [https:\/\/about.bnef.com<\/a>], accessed November 12, 2017.<\/p>\n [2] Ibid<\/p>\n [3] RAC Foundation, \u201cKeeping the Nation Moving, Facts on Parking\u201d (PDF file), downloaded from Rac Foundation (The motoring research organization) website, [http:\/\/www.racfoundation.org<\/a>], accessed November 14, 2017.<\/p>\n [4] Shell, \u201cMotorist,\u201d [http:\/\/www.shell.com\/motorist\/shell-station-locator.html<\/a>], accessed November 12 2017.<\/p>\n [5] Andrew Ward, \u201cShell opens its first UK electric vehicle charging points,\u201d Financial Times, <\/em>October 17, 2017, [https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/c95af60c-b33c-11e7-aa26-bb002965bce8<\/a>], accessed November 2017.<\/p>\n [6] NewMotion, \u201cCharging Solutions,\u201d [https:\/\/newmotion.com\/en\/charging-solutions<\/a>], accessed November 12 2017.<\/p>\n [7] Andrew Ward, \u201cShell opens its first UK electric vehicle charging points,\u201d Financial Times, <\/em>October 17, 2017, [https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/c95af60c-b33c-11e7-aa26-bb002965bce8<\/a>], accessed November 2017.<\/p>\n [8] Shell, \u201cWhat we do: New Energies,\u201d http:\/\/www.shell.com\/about-us\/what-we-do\/new-energies.html<\/a>\u201d, accessed November 12 2017.<\/p>\n [9] Tesla, \u201cBlog: Charging is Our Priority,\u201d https:\/\/www.tesla.com\/blog\/charging-our-priority<\/a>, accessed November 14 2017.<\/p>\nSome final thoughts <\/strong><\/h3>\n