EVLO is excited to kick off its new Employee Spotlight series, dedicated to celebrating and highlighting its team’s unique talents, achievements, and perspectives. This month, we’re highlighting Alain Aubuchon, Business – Development Director at EVLO, and his impressive career and journey with the organization.
Q: Alain, what was your professional journey leading up to EVLO?
A: I graduated from École Polytechnique (Montréal) 40 years ago and spent the first three decades of my career with an industrial liquid gas company, Air Liquide. In January 2014, I joined Hydro-Québec to work with an accomplished electrochemist, Dr. Karim Zaghib, setting up a battery energy storage subsidiary: Esstalion Technology, in partnership with SONY, was the first step in the creation of EVLO (founding date: June 3, 2014). Subsequently, today’s official EVLO was born on December 9, 2020 without the partnership of SONY.
Our initial mandate was to continue our research in the field of LFP battery chemistry (based on Hydro-Québec’s portfolio of patents) and develop our first-generation battery energy storage system (BESS), which has since evolved into our fifth-generation BESS: EVLOFLEX.
Q: How did EVLO transition from R&D to its current state?
A:Thanks to former EVP of IREQ, Dr. Élie Saheb, we convinced Hydro-Québec’s Distribution management team to launch a pilot project in 2017 at their Hemmingford substation, for an investment deferral business case. Since then, we’ve developed numerous projects throughout Hydro-Québec’s network as well as others in Canada, the USA, and internationally.
Q: Can you share a proud moment from your time at EVLO?
A: Commercializing our LFP battery chemistry with Dr. Karim Zaghib was thrilling because I was able to work with one of the brightest minds in the field of electrochemistry. And then being able to commercialize an innovative product – our BESS – truly stands out. One of my proudest moments was convincing Hydro-Québec of our product’s commercial potential.
I was also very proud to secure our first international project, Innergex, in Tonnerre, France in 2020 – particularly since, due to COVID, I had to negotiate and conclude the entire agreement remotely.
Q: What do you value most about your work at EVLO?
A: The people. Our team is my greatest source of pride: we started with only four members and now have over a hundred talented people pushing our technology further and faster. Sometimes I send a picture of our current team to Karim, so he sees how his original idea has grown and evolved. I believe the key to success is surrounding yourself with people smarter than you, and seeing these brilliant teams manage the company fills me with confidence in EVLO’s future.
Q: What contributes most to EVLO’s ability to provide good service to customers?
A: The secret to good service isn’t a secret: understand the customers’ needs and problems and ensure our hardware and software can solve them. For instance, since we know safety and security are among the top priorities for our utility market, we’ve integrated some of the most comprehensive safety measures in the industry into our BESS. Our teams’ expertise, our patented LFP battery chemistry, and the support of Hydro-Québec have given us an edge to grow and deliver on our ambitions in North America. These elements allow us to provide safe, high-performing BESS at a competitive price.
Q: What are your future goals for EVLO?
A: As we further develop and refine our products and services, I aim to ensure that EVLO continues its sustainable growth by demonstrating to customers how our technology can solve their problems. Our success so far gives me confidence that we’ve already accomplished great things and spurs our team to always strive for more and better.
