In recent months, Ford has partnered with a variety of energy providers to offer customers free charging, as well as incentives for those that choose to charge their EVs during off-peak hours, which places less strain on the grid and is cheaper, to boot. That includes the likes of Duke Energy and TXU Energy, both of which provide financial benefits to those that help maintain a sustainable grid. However, with commercial EV demand outpacing demand from retail consumers, Ford has announced a new partnership that’s aimed at helping businesses transition their fleets to all-electric vehicles, too.
That partnership is with Atlanta, Georgia-based energy provider Southern Company, which will embark on a six-month long pilot program designed to provide insights into the operational benefits and requirements of electrification for businesses. Southern Company will use these insights – gathered from its 587,000 commercial customers – to create a blueprint of sorts for companies looking to go electric, with a focus on optimizing depot charging practices, maximizing uptime, and minimizing the costs of ownership.
Southern Company will collect this data using Ford Pro Intelligence and Ford Pro Charging Software from over 200 Ford F-150 Lightning pickups at its various subsidiaries, as well as charging data from over 150 Ford Pro Chargers, including Level 2 AC and Level 3 DC charging stations, at those same entities. It expects these insights to help it schedule charging sessions in a way that reduces energy consumption during peak demand, as well as help companies better understand just how much energy they’ll need to support fleets of EVs.
“This pilot will create a flexible, scalable electric fleet management model that can be readily adopted by others,” said Ananya Gupta, Senior Product Manager. “At the conclusion of the program, organizations will have a blueprint to successfully navigate the transition to electric vehicles and unlock all their associated benefits.”
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