Driven by demand for electric vans, buses, and trucks from giants like Amazon and FedEx, along with growing interest from municipalities and small business owners, the commercial EV space is heating up.

But electrifying this share of the market will take a lot more than throwing batteries in vans and trucks. These vehicles need complex charging infrastructure. And their operators need ways to maintain those plugs.

Which is why entrepreneurs and startups are focused on solving some of the great roadblocks to electrifying the commercial EV space. Insider got a chance to catch up with eight executives helming these outfits at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in September.

Here's how they say they're tapping into the opportunities afforded by commercial EVs. 

Fermata Energy can give fleets the power to help in crisis.

Fermata's bidirectional charging tech takes unneeded energy stored in an electric vehicle, returns it to the grid, and provides electricity when needed in peak times.

At the top of Fermata's target list are commercial municipal fleets, for a few reasons.

"Around 5:00 or 6:00, municipal fleets are done for the most part. A lot of the workers are at home, the cars are parked," said CFO John Wheeler. " That's when you want to be discharging.

"With municipal fleets, there is this extra value of resiliency, which is such a big issue right now for all cities," Wheeler added. "If you think about having a network of bidirectional chargers around critical city infrastructure, not only can you now have a system that can pay for itself in two years by integrating renewable energy." 

In the event of a disaster, cities can dispatch mobile power to citizens in need.

(Read this article in its entirety on Business Insider.)

About Fermata Energy

Park it. Plug it. Profit.TM Fermata Energy’s proprietary vehicle-to-everything (V2X) software platform and bidirectional chargers turn EVs into mobile energy storage assets, making it possible for EVs owners to combat climate change, increase energy resilience, and reduce energy costs. Learn more at www.fermataenergy.com, and follow us on Twitter (@FermataEnergy) and LinkedIn.