Siemens to roll out home EV charger adapter to avoid panel upgrades

Siemens is working with ConnectDER to introduce a proprietary plug-in adapter for home electric vehicle chargers.

These adapters will enable electric vehicle (EV) owners to charge EVs by connecting chargers directly through the meter socket. The adapter will save an estimated 60 to 80 percent of the charger installation cost by bypassing a home’s electric service panel and avoiding the need for electric panel upgrades. Roughly half of US home panels would need upgrades to allow the installation of a typical Level 2 charger, typically a 7-11kW device requiring 40-60 Amps on a 240V line.

That is because older homes, particularly in the Northeast, were built when the demand for electric service rarely exceeded 100 Amps. Thus, service panel upgrades are frequently required to support the additional energy demand of new electric products like EVs, heat pumps, and other smart appliances. ConnectDER’s innovative meter adapter platform helps bridge that gap, especially for underserved low- and moderate-income populations.

This EV home-charging technology, which takes 15 minutes to install, will be designed and manufactured by ConnectDER exclusively for Siemens.

“Siemens invests in initiatives that help the world embrace electrified transportation, and we are pleased to partner with ConnectDER on this important effort,” Chris King, senior vice president of strategic partnerships at Siemens, said. “While the EV industry continues to show explosive growth, to meet critical net-zero carbon emission goals like we have at Siemens, we must remove obstacles to broader adoption. ConnectDER’s innovative solution to simplify home EV charging helps overcome these challenges, and we are excited to work with its team to rapidly roll out this product.”

Home EV charging integration is expected to grow by some 390 percent over the next five years, according to a recent report by Juniper Research. Further, the market for home chargers is expected to exceed $16 billion in 2026, up from $3.4 billion in 2021.

“We are very excited to partner with Siemens, obviously one of the strongest and most storied electrical infrastructure providers on the planet. If we’re going to meet ambitious decarbonization targets, we simply must accelerate the adoption of EVs — the installation of EV chargers is a huge part of that equation. This technology saves homeowners thousands of dollars in electrical costs and will help make the move to electric vehicles considerably easier,” ConnectDER CEO Whit Fulton said.