A large electric vehicle charging depot will be built under the Williamsburg Bridge in Brooklyn, providing EV owners, as well as taxi and rideshare drivers, a chance to charge their vehicles during peak times when energy is in most demand.
XCharge North America, the North American subsidiary of XCHG Limited, is partnering with Energy Plus, a New York–based energy-efficiency and electrification contractor, to build what may be one of the largest battery storage-backed EV charging lot in the country. The lot will be near where Bedford Avenue hits the Williamsburg Bridge, close to the Moxy Brooklyn Williamsburg and Peter Luger Steak House.
The firms plan to install 44 GridLink battery-storage units that will provide 9.46 MWh of energy storage that will serve 88 parking spaces. The storage system will have bidirectional energy flow capabilities, meaning it can add power during low-peak energy hours (usually at night) but can push back electricity into the city's grid when needed.
The battery storage units are designed to let customers charge their EVs at any time, especially during peak hours or during blackouts, without straining the city’s power grid, said Alex Urist, vice president at XCharge North America.
"As far as energy consumption goes, you have huge peaks of taking maybe a megawatt or maybe two megawatts from the grid at a given time, like in an instantaneous moment," he said. "As such, you need to think about ways to help alleviate that strain from the grid."
Urist said the location is ideal, predicting that many taxi and rideshare drivers traveling between Manhattan and Brooklyn, as well as to LaGuardia Airport, will use the lot to charge their EVs.
In a statement, Moshe Lefkowitz, founder of Energy Plus, said he hopes the new EV lot will be "as easy to use as stepping into your local café to grab a cup of coffee.”
The site will operate under Energy Plus’ Eplug brand, and the firm said it plans to offer the same charging model to other major U.S. cities, including to commercial clients.
Construction is slated to end by the beginning of the summer.
