The Three Types of Electric Vehicle Charging Ports Explained

As we reported on Monday, there are different types of charging ports for electric vehicles, depending on the type of vehicle. And there are three different levels of charging ports as well, depending on the type of vehicle you buy, as well as the overall health and condition of its battery. A Level Three charging port, as B.E.L’s Market Research and Innovation Officer, Selene Solis shared with us, is the equivalent of a fast charger for a cell phone. Solis explains the difference between the three types of charging ports and what you can expect from each one.

Selene Solis

Selene Solis, Market Research and Innovation Officer, B.E.L

“There are different types of charging for electric vehicles. A level one charge is the slowest charger. That’s the charger that your vehicle comes with that you plug in. It can take anywhere from 20 hours and beyond, depending on the vehicle, to charge with a level one charger. At B.E.L, we have been focused on faster charging because we know that is what the public expects, right? So, level two charging, which is – we’ve installed, or we are installing nine of those locations. Level two charging can charge an electric vehicle from anywhere from six to eight hours. So if you consider that those locations will look at like businesses where employees go and spend all day, at restaurant areas, business districts where there’s a lot to do in the area, so there’s time to charge in that space, keeping in mind that most electric vehicle owners will be charging at home primarily and public charging is to supplement their home charging.”

Marion Ali

“So you don’t have to fully charge. You can charge for an hour or two?”

Selene Solis

“What you need and then move on, exactly. And then the fastest charging, which is the one you asked about, which is what is behind me – Level Three charging. We have three locations for Level Three rapid charging in Belize. This is the fastest in charging technology available globally. And so we have three: one here at B.E.L headquarters, and on this machine, an electric vehicle can charge anywhere from as little as 30 minutes to as much as an hour, an hour and 15 minutes, depending on the type of vehicle, depending on the health of your battery, depending on various factors that will influence charging time.”