CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
Meeting: December 5, 2023
Subject
Accept Silicon Valley Clean Energy Community Resilience Grant in the amount of up to $233,963 to purchase two (2) Electric Vehicle Autonomous Renewable Charger (EV ARC) portable solar-powered charging systems.
Recommended Action
Adopt Resolution No. 23-XXX accepting up to $233,963 in Community Resilience Grant funding from Silicon Valley Clean Energy and approving budget modification #2324-316 increasing appropriation and estimated revenues by $233,963 in 100-87-829 900-990 for procurement of Electric Vehicle Autonomous Renewable Charger units; Authorize the City Manager to execute all documentation necessary to accept the grant fundings; and Authorize the purchase of two (2) Electric Vehicle Autonomous Renewable Charger units, trailer and additional support and maintenance for a total cost of $233,963 from Beam Global.
Reasons for Recommendation
Silicon Valley Clean Energy Community Resilience Grant Silicon Valley Clean Energy (SVCE), a community choice energy agency, was formed as a Joint Powers Authority in 2016, and now serves approximately 270,000 residential and commercial electricity customers across a service area comprised of the following thirteen communities: Campbell, Cupertino, Gilroy, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Milpitas, Monte Sereno, Morgan Hill, Mountain View, Saratoga, Sunnyvale, and Unincorporated portions of Santa Clara County.
The SVCE launched a community resilience program that provides $5 million in grants to member jurisdictions to aid in planning and implementing resiliency projects (energy resilience is defined as the ability to mitigate, withstand, or recover quickly from unanticipated energy disruptions to ensure energy availability and reliability.) The grant maximum for each jurisdiction is based on the proportion of load as determined by SVCE.
To be eligible for these funds, projects must:
Support a critical facility and/or provide community services during a power outage;
Enable self-sufficient access to power during an outage, or decrease the risk of power outages; and
3. Be a zero-carbon project.
The City submitted a grant application to SVCE for the purchase of two EV ARC units, including a trailer and additional support and maintenance. The procurement of the EV ARC units will greatly benefit the City of Cupertino by providing reliable power sources during a disaster or power outage.
Electric Vehicle Autonomous Renewable Charger units (EV ARC units) Each EV ARC unit is mounted with a solar array and equipped with battery storage, EV chargers, and an emergency power panel. The unit generates clean energy to power EV chargers or equipment. During a power outage, drivers can still charge their vehicles and first responders can power their equipment using the emergency electrical panel. When power is not needed, energy collected from the solar array is stored in the onboard battery.
The EV ARC units the City is proposing for purchase come with 43 kilowatt per hour (kWh) battery storage which will store approximately 120 e-miles of range each. The total miles of range the units can provide increases to approximately 190 e-miles if vehicles are charged during daytime hours with solar exposure.
City staff anticipates locating the EV ARC units at City Hall and Quinlan Community Center but will rotate the units to other City facilities (Senior Center, Wilson Park, Creekside Park, etc.) approximately every two months for public use. The portable unit will be placed within existing standard parking stalls. Placement of these units requires no construction or infrastructure installation. During an emergency, such as an extended PG&E Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) or power outage, the City can relocate both units to the most appropriate location to serve the residents and allow for charging of personal electronic devices.
In addition to the purchase of these units, the remaining grant funding will be used to extend services such as Enterprise Cloud Plan which provides access to charging session data, usage controls, data management, and reporting; an annual plan for a Remote Monitoring and Management System (RMMS) which provides access to view data and status of the EV ARC system, battery status, energy output and energy use session data; and an Operation & Maintenance (O&M) plan. The extension of these services will allow the City to evaluate them for efficacy and will provide a longer maintenance coverage period.
Formal Competitive Bidding Exemption
Purchase of Beam Global units is available through the State of California Contract DGS #1-22-61-16 which expires on June 23, 2025. Staff recommends the use of the State’s contract as the City leverages economy of scale cost benefits and reduces administrative time.
Cupertino Municipal Code Chapter 3.22 provides for exemptions to the bidding process requirements of that chapter when these purchases occur from any other public agency created under the laws of the State of California or the United States Government. The State of California contract is available to any public entity in the State of California.
Next Steps
Upon City Council acceptance of the grant funds, the City will execute the grant agreement, initiate procurement of the units, and apply for reimbursement from SVCE. Projects must be completed no later than December 31, 2024, and all requests for reimbursement must be submitted within 60 days of project completion. The units are expected to be manufactured and delivered 90 days from issuance of the purchase order.
Sustainability Impact
Procurement of the EV ARC units support Cupertino’s Climate Action Plan 2.0 which focuses on carbon-free electricity and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
Fiscal Impact
There is no net fiscal impact associated with the procurement of the EV ARC units. The City will purchase the EV ARC units and request full reimbursement of the grant funds from Silicon Valley Clean Energy. Staff is requesting increased appropriations in 100-87-829 900-990 to fund the purchase of the units and is also increasing estimated revenues in 100-87-829 440-428 for estimated grant fund to be received.
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
The project is exempt from CEQA under CEQA Guideline Section 15311 which exempts the construction or placement of minor structures accessory to (appurtenant to) existing commercial, industrial, or institutional facilities including small parking lots. _____________________________________
Prepared by: Jimmy Tan, Assistant Director of Public Works Reviewed by: Chad Mosley, Director of Public Works
Matt Morley, Assistant City Manager
Approved for Submission by: Pamela Wu, City Manager
Attachments:
A – Draft Resolution
B – Grant Agreement
C – Beam EV ARC Price Quote
D – BEAM EV ARC Product Information
E – State of California Agreement