There are currently two fast-charging stations in Provo, but this new code may change that. Travis Ball, Energy Department director for Provo Power, who proposed the plan at the meeting, and members of the council expressed at the meeting that they hope this change will incentivize developers to create more fast-charging stations in the city.

Not only could the changes benefit local residents with EVs, but they also have the potential to positively impact the city economy through those who are passing through Provo and stop to use the chargers, Ball explained.

“I just want to express my gratitude for this. I think this is much needed in the city,” said council member George Handley, representative for District 2. “I think this will help us have more fast-charging stations, which I think will not only serve our citizens but maybe bring income to the city because it will serve people who are traveling through, and they will stop and use our businesses. So, I think this is an obvious improvement over the past rate structure that we had.”

Before this code change, the city was the only entity allowed to sell electricity, although some charging stations did not follow that rule. Ball said the idea to change the code came from an owner of one of the charging stations, who brought to the city’s attention that they could not make a high profit from the rate they were being charged for power. Since the city was supposed to be the only one selling electricity, Ball said, “They probably shouldn’t have (sold electricity), but we just hadn’t enforced it. So, we wanted to make it legal so they could.”

Until now, owners of fast-charging stations have been charged for electricity the same as any commercial business. This means they were getting charged for the demand rate and the time-of-use rate. Demand rate charges are based on the user’s highest demand for electricity. So, for a fast-charging station with only a few EV customers, all of whom use high amounts of electricity, the demand rate will be high — driving up the cost of the charging station for the developer. The time-of-use rate means the operators of those stations are only being charged for the actual amount of electricity being used at certain times of day.

Currently, commercial owners are charged both rates, but with the code change, owners of fast-charging stations only will be charged the time-of-use rate. This saves them money when they have only a few customers.

According to Ball, it is a better deal for commercial companies and for normal charging stations to use the original rate. Since fast-charging stations may have sporadic customers who use high amounts of energy, he said, not being charged for the demand rate is a better deal for them. However, once the EV customer base is steady, with about 20% utilization, “they can move back to the existing commercial rate to lower their electric bills,” according to a report by Provo City Council staff. This means they would return to a lower time-of-use rate and a higher demand charge.

If a fast-charging station has high utilization, ball said it makes sense to switch to the original rate, although the owner can choose. With more EV customers, an electric bill would be cheaper using the original rate. With fewer EV customers, it is more expensive, which is why the city passed this new rate for fast-charging stations, Ball explained.

The time-of-use rate changes throughout the day. From 3-8 p.m. when most everyone goes home from work, the cost of power is the highest for the city, so fast-charging stations will be charged an on-peak energy rate of 36 cents per kilowatt hour. During all other off-peak times, they will be charged approximately 12 cents per kilowatt hour.

According to presentation documents, an operator of a fast-charging station could see a 70% drop in fees by switching to the new rate structure.

This new rate is only for fast-charging stations, not other electric vehicle charging stations. Ball said that’s because it would not be a better deal for the slower charging stations.

There are other requirements to qualify for the change in rate, including the charging station being available to the general public, having at least one direct current fast charger and having installed time-of-day metering equipment. Questions about other requirements to be eligible for the new rate can be referred to Provo Power.

This code change also is expected to bring in additional revenue to Provo because more customers may end up paying for power. Ball explained 11% of this revenue will go into Provo’s general fund. “This is a win-win-win for the city, for developers and for people who need to use EV chargers,” he said Tuesday.