Milestone installation marks progress in shared goal of expanding public charging access and accelerating EV adoption.
EVgo Inc., one of the nation’s largest public fast charging networks for electric vehicles (EVs), and General Motors (GM) have surpassed 1,000 fast charging stalls as part of their longstanding collaboration to expand fast charging infrastructure. First announced in 2020 and expanded upon in 2021, the collaboration will lead to the development and installation of 3,250 DC fast charging stalls in major metro markets.
To date, EVgo and GM have opened fast charging stalls across nearly 230 locations in 39 markets covering 27 states, with the majority featuring high-power 350kW fast charging. EVgo and GM are working together to broaden access to public charging where EV drivers already spend time, such as grocery stores, retail centers and city centers, while also serving the need for customers who are unable to charge at home or work, such as renters and those living in multifamily dwellings.
“The availability of fast charging infrastructure is key to widespread EV adoption and consumer confidence in all-electric transportation. That is why we’re working with GM to build convenient and reliable fast charging stations across the country to serve current and future EV drivers,” said Cathy Zoi, CEO at EVgo. “Today, we’ve hit a major milestone in our joint efforts to electrify the transportation sector and we look forward to further expanding our charging footprint with GM in the coming years to realize our vision of Electric for All.”
EVgo is one of GM’s preferred EV charge point operators within its holistic Ultium Charge 360 initiative. Beyond collaborating to expand public charging access, EVgo and GM are also working together to further improve reliability and enhance customer experience through a comprehensive action-oriented plan, including enhanced health checks across the network and customer education through GM’s dealer network to help new EV buyers navigate public charging for the first time. The companies also helped to launch Plug and Charge in 2022, a feature that allows drivers to start a session simply by plugging in, no additional payment authentication needed.
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“As GM advances its vision of an all-electric future, it’s imperative we expand public charging infrastructure to complement the rapid expansion of our breakthrough EV portfolio. Together, these two efforts are making ‘EVs for everybody’ a reality,” says Hoss Hassani, GM Vice President of Charging and Energy. “This milestone with EVgo underscores our commitment to supporting more customers as they switch to an EV lifestyle, by expanding access to convenient charging everywhere.”
EV adoption is accelerating in Illinois, where legislation passed in 2021 established a goal of reaching 1 million registered EVs by 2030, and created new vehicle and charging infrastructure incentives to be administered by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA).1 In addition to the IEPA programs, Illinois will spend $148 million installing EV charging stations along interstate corridors over the next five years as part of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program, supporting the expansion of public charging that will be needed as more drivers in the Midwest make the switch to electric.
A ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the 1,000th stall was held in Woodridge, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, at the recently completed charging station at the Woodgrove Festival Shopping Mall. The station is in a prime retail location within a short drive of Interstates 55 and 355. The event featured a distinguished lineup of speakers including GM Director of EV Infrastructure Deployment, Alex Keros; GM Vice President of Charging and Energy, Hoss Hassani; EVgo Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel, Francine Sullivan; EVgo Senior Vice President of Program Deployment, Marcy Bauer; ComEd Vice President of Strategy, Energy Policy and Revenue Initiatives, Scott Vogt; and Chairman of the Illinois Commerce Commission, Doug Scott.
SOURCE: BusinessWire