NASCAR Blows Off Trump’s Attack On EV Charging Stations

Last Updated on: 16th February 2025, 02:44 pm

If all goes according to plan, on Sunday President Trump will take time out from his busy schedule of wrecking the US government to enjoy the Daytona 500 stock car race in Florida, much to the delight of the North American Stock Car Racing Association. The organization is showing off the new ABB NASCAR EV prototype race car at the venue, and it has just installed 30 new EV charging stations at its Daytona Beach headquarters, too. Oh, wait, why’d they do that? Are they trying to send a message? NASCAR, blink twice if you can hear me….

NASCAR Dings Trump With New EV Charging Stations

As with everything else he touches, Trump is on track to destroy the US auto industry one way or another. Imposing tariffs, laying an axe to industry-supporting grant and loan programs, eliminating the federal EV tax credit, and choking off federal funds for EV charging stations are all on the menu.

That’s why CleanTechnica ears perked up when we got a press release on February 15 outlining NASCAR’s EV charging station plans. Thirty stations won’t nearly make up for the tens of thousands of federally supported charging stations that are now gathering dust somewhere, but they do send a message about the future course of mobility in the US.

The new EV charging stations signify “a step forward in the organization’s commitment to sustainability through NASCAR IMPACT, a plan that aims to reduce NASCAR’s carbon footprint to zero across NASCAR core operations by 2035,” NASCAR explains, referring to a 2035 net zero goal it articulated during the Biden administration, in the spring of 2023.

“The new EV chargers are for employee and industry use and will facilitate NASCAR’s transition to electric fleet vehicles,” NASCAR adds.

By zero carbon, of course, they don’t mean NASCAR racing. The organization has been developing new race-worthy EV technology, but they have indicated that no all-electric racing is in the cards for now. Meanwhile, zeroing out the operational carbon is a good start.

EV Charging Stations And Renewable Energy, Too

The new EV charging stations are the latest step in a long decarbonization journey for NASCAR. The organization got a jump on cutting its carbon footprint during the Obama administration, when it launched the “NASCAR Green” program. The 2023 commitment stepped up the program to include community engagement elements and rebranded it to “NASCAR IMPACT.”

“When NASCAR announced its first long-term carbon emissions goal on Tuesday as part of a robust new impact platform, the move signaled the beginning of a new era in sustainability for America’s top motorsport,” NASCAR noted in a press statement dated April 18, 2023.

Near-term goals include 100% renewable electricity at some venues and developing a more sustainable racing fuel, along with installing more EV charging stations.

In 2023, NASCAR also joined the Clean Energy Buyers Association, an organization credited with pushing renewable energy into the mainstream by leveraging the purchasing power of large-scale energy users. “The Clean Energy Buyers Association focuses on unlocking markets for energy customers, catalyzing communities of customers for deployment, and decarbonizing the grid for all,” CEBA says of itself.

It Takes A Village

NASCAR credits the new EV charging stations to a collaboration with the EVolution branch of the utility Florida Power & Light Company and the Swiss firm ABB. All 30 stations are Level 2, which is typical for workplaces where cars remain parked for long periods of time.

ABB’s North America branch is a founding partner of the IMPACT program, so it’s no surprise to see its fingerprints all over the new EV charging stations. “NASCAR is leading the way on electrification and Daytona is another significant step forward,” enthuses John Stahlbusch, who is the VP of North America Sales at ABB’s E-mobility branch.

“Electrifying real estate like parking at NASCAR headquarters puts these assets to work, accelerating the transition to sustainable mobility,” Stahlbusch emphasizes.

The new EV charging stations are just for starters. “The ABB NASCAR Electrification Partnership explores strategic opportunities for electrification throughout the sport, including race vehicles, charging infrastructure, and energy education,” explains ABB Division President Khalid Mandri.

Trump Or No Trump, More EV Charging Stations Are Coming

Despite having no plans to introduce electric racing any time soon, NASCAR and ABB did unveil the new ABB NASCAR EV prototype race car last summer, and the car will run through its paces at Daytona. If Trump gets there early enough, he can check out the drift track where hourly demonstrations will take place before the race begins.

Meanwhile, if you caught that thing about “electrifying real estate,” that trend is something Trump is powerless to stop. Trump’s freeze on the $5 billion NEVI program will slow, not stop, buildout of the US EV charging station network.

NASCAR’s fleet electrification aspirations represent just one emerging area of activity. The fleet electrification trend also includes the US Department of Defense, which owns one of the largest single fleets in the nation. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory ran the numbers last fall and noted that 27% of the light-duty vehicles purchased by the Army in 2022 were EVs or plug-in hybrids, a colossal year-over-year leap up from the 2021 figure of 1%.

EV charging station stakeholders have also figured out how to crack the hard-to-reach rental housing market with new turnkey charging-as-a-service solutions that eliminate upfront costs and operational hassles.

All of this is well and good, but the fact remains that the President of the United States is ripping the federal government apart from the inside with the eager assistance of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and the devastation is cascading in the form of lost funding, lost jobs, lost opportunities, lives upended, and significant new risks to the climate, public health, and national security.

As a co-equal branch of government, Congress can stop the bleeding. The judicial branch is doing its job, but court orders have no teeth unless the Republican majority in Congress steps up and exercises its Constitutional authority. What are they waiting for?

There’s one way to find out. The experts say contacting members of Congress regularly and repeatedly makes a difference. Find yours here.

Photo (cropped): NASCAR is flying the decarbonization flag with 30 new EV charging stations at its HQ and a showcase for the new ABB NASCAR EV prototype at the Daytona 500 race in Florida (courtesy of ABB, via email).