A new standard is being agreed for electric vehicles

A new standard being agreed for electrical vehicle recharging will represent a major step forward for this market. A new technical standard has now been approved by SAE International, which will lead to major reductions in charging times for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and electric vehicles. The standard has been developed following input from over 190 experts around the world from the automotive, utilities and charging equipment markets. This new technology will lead to reductions in charging times from eight hours at present to just 20 minutes in the future. The new Combo standard has been developed in cooperation with European automotive experts and has been backed by both US and German automakers. However, the rival CHAdeMo system has been backed by Japanese automakers and has more than 1,500 charging stations in operation, most of them in Japan. Both CHAdeMO and Combo offer fast charging through direct current. But the Combo and CHAdeMO connectors are different and so are their protocols, so a user cannot simply use a plug adapter to switch from one system to another. Combo proponents claim this system is superior as it combines Level 2 (220V) and fast-charging (480V or more) into a single plug, eliminating the need for two charging points on a battery-powered vehicle.