Distributed Energy Resources, Energy Efficiency  -  March 4, 2021

Six US utilities join together to create interstate EV charging highway

A group of six major utilities announced March 2 a new coalition that will focus on creating a network of electric vehicle charging stations across major highways in the South, Midwest, Gulf, and Central Plains regions.

The Electric Highway Coalition is made up of Duke Energy, American Electric Power, Dominion Energy, Entergy Corporation, Southern Co., and the Tennessee Valley Authority. The utilities will collectively work toward providing DC fast chargers for electric vehicles across their respective service territories to facilitate interstate travel.

“The path to cleaner transportation is a robust charging infrastructure along the nation's major highways,” Lang Reynolds, director of Electrification Strategy for Duke Energy, said in a statement. “Range anxiety is a barrier to more EV adoption. This coalition can erase those obstacles and help deliver the benefits of EV ownership to consumers.”

Initiatives such as this will be key to increasing electric vehicle use in the United States; the Edison Electric Institute estimates that 18 million EVs will be used in the U.S. by 2030. The charging sites will be located along major highway routes with easy highway access and amenities for travelers. 

Duke Energy’s preliminary contributions to the coalition align with its recent launch of a sweeping EV charging expansion project, which includes 570 public chargers in Florida, a $25 million pilot program for the installation of 200 chargers in North Carolina and $1,000 for 400 residential chargers in South Carolina.

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