The United States automotive and transportation industry, reportedly, is set to witness an unprecedented revamp of sorts, in terms of charging stations installed across its rapidly evolving electric vehicles market. As per sources, Electrify America, a subsidiary owned by Volkswagen AG, recently announced that it aims to install 2,800 electric-vehicle charging stations in at least 17 of the largest cities across the U.S. by mid-2019.
The charging stations are said to be installed at around 500 sites, with approximately 75 percent of them catering to workplaces and the rest to be built at large residential complexes. Apparently, industry analysts claim that Volkswagen’s plan would significantly impact the commercialization prospects of the U.S. electric vehicles market.
For the record, Electrify America was set up by Volkswagen to implement its USD 2 billion electric vehicle charging infrastructure program across the U.S. – part of the German automaker’s court settlement for eluding diesel emissions tests. While implementing the 10-year plan to establish a robust network of charging stations across the U.S., Volkswagen has agreed to spend around USD 800 million in California and USD 1.2 billion outside the state.
Meanwhile, it would be prudent to mention that the automaker pleaded guilty, in March this year, to three felony accusations under a plea accord to settle the charges levied against it for installing secret software in its diesel vehicles to dodge emissions test. Going by some recent news reports, the diesel emissions scandal, which perturbed the global automotive and transportation industry, has cost the firm close to USD 30 billion so far.
The U.S. Environment Protection Agency approved the first phase of the company’s plan which prescribes USD 250 million in building charging stations up until June 2019. The company stated that it has chosen three charging solution providers namely EV Connect, Greenlots, and SemaConnect to install the stations.