As production model all-electric vehicles (EVs) are set to hit the open market next year, a growing chorus of experts and studies are warning that the charging infrastructure and grid technologies needed to support even a small number of these vehicles is nowhere near to being adequate. Thankfully, some grassroots efforts have catalyzed some forward movement in at least planning for these vehicles in key cities where they are sure to be, but real progress has yet to be made on actually getting infrastructure in place.
Without a relatively practical supporting infrastructure for EVs, their potential to become a viable player in the auto market will be lost. Much like a gasoline-powered vehicle without a place to fill up, an EV without a place to charge is as equally undesirable.
If Someone Else Can’t Do The Job; Do It Yourself
Nissan realizes this point as well as any company seeing as it is set to be one of the first companies to jump into the EV business with the sale of its all-electric Leaf in late 2010. Instead of waiting for cities and local municipalities, all of which have their own set of priorities, to take the needed initiative on EV infrastructure, Nissan plans to create it themselves.
The company is planning on blanketing the U.S. with a network of charging stations ahead of the Leaf’s release. Nissan will be working with the Arizona-based Ecotality to bring a huge number of chargers (11,210 to be exact), along with 4,700 Leaf EVs, to five states: Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, and Tennessee. Oh yeah, the Department of Energy (DOE) is also chipping in $100 million to help ‘facilitate’ the project as well.
The joint venture between Nissan and Ecotality will install 220-volt chargers in customers’ homes throughout Tennessee initially (the location of Nissan’s $1 billion factory for lithium-ion battery pack production). After that, charging stations are planned to be installed in Nashville, Chattanooga, and Knoxville as well as along the highways connecting those cities. Nice to see somebody taking charge of the EV infrastructure dilemma.
The Good: Desperately need EV charging infrastructure will be put in specific areas in 5 states.
The Bad: 5 out of 50 states alone having a minimum of EV infrastructure still isn’t enough for widespread adoption and purchase of these vehicles.
The Bottom-Line: Nissan has taken the initiative where it seems local government and other companies are unwilling to do so. While 5 states isn’t a lot; it is a desperately needed start for an industry that has great potential both economically and environmentally.
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