Bay Area & Central California Coast To Get More Than 6,950 New EV Chargers
It is expected that more than 6,950 new EV chargers will be installed in the Bay Area and central coastal California, thanks to $65 million in funding from four California Community Choice Aggregators and contributions from the state of California. The aggregators are from the Bay Area and the central California coast. The Peninsula-Silicon Valley Incentive Project is providing $55 million of the total funding amount. The funding goes to each community choice aggregator service area for new EV charger installations.
California has a goal of having five million zero-emissions vehicles operating in the state by 2030, so there will need to be far more public electric chargers. There are about 22,000 public chargers in California at the moment.
Rafael Reyes, Director of Energy Programs at Peninsula Clean Energy, answered some questions about the new charging infrastructure for CleanTechnica.
How many EV charging stations will be installed with the $65 million?
It is expected that the program will result in the installation of over 450 fast chargers and 6,500 Level 2 chargers.
Where will they be located?
The chargers will be deployed in workplaces, multi-family dwellings, and other public locations across the service territories of the participating agencies. The determination of specific locations is made by site owners who come forward with applications to install stations at their properties.
Will any provide charging for free, or how will the charging costs be determined?
Pricing for charging is determined by the station owners. Many workplaces provide no-cost charging for their employees whereas apartments and public locations typically charge a fee. Typical fees involve a modest connection fee and a per kWh charge. However, because electricity is typically less expensive than gasoline on a per-mile basis, such fees are usually less than the cost of fueling a gas car.
Will some be fast chargers and some slow? If so, is there a rough estimate of how many of each type there will be?
We expect likely over 450 fast chargers. These are high speed chargers that provide a complete or near complete charge in the time it takes to have a restaurant meal or grocery stop. The charging rates will be 50 kW or more. We hope to have many be over 100 kW which will be able to serve well future vehicles coming onto the market. For an EV with 350 mile maximum range that was “empty” would likely get an 80% charge in about 40 minutes with 100 kW. The other chargers will be Level 2 chargers which are appropriate for overnight or working hours
Will any be located in low-income communities or neighborhoods?
The program offers added incentives for siting chargers in low-income communities. Specifics vary by jurisdiction.
When will the new charging stations be installed?
The Central Coast Incentive Project is live and the Peninsula-Silicon Valley Incentive Project is expected to launch mid-December. Projects typically start quickly after applications are received for incentives. Level 2 projects must be completed within 9 months of application being submitted and DC fast chargers must be completed within 15 months.
Will they be compatible with all electric vehicles?
The chargers will support all vehicles that use the most common open standards. Level 2 chargers will support the J1772 connector used by most automakers. Fast chargers will use the Combined Charging System (CCS) used by most automakers and CHAdeMO used by some Japanese automakers. Tesla provides adaptors for use of J1772 and, for some models, CCS.
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