Electrify America Outlines Third $200 Million Investment in California

author: Vineeth Joel Patel   

Over the next 30 months, Electrify America will invest $200 million in California's zero-emissions infrastructure and education as part of the company's third investment phase in the state. Electrify America's latest effort is part of the company's long-term plan to invest $800 million in California over 10 years. The original investment plan began in 2016 with a goal of investing $2 billion over 10 years.


Where The Money Will Go


The company's latest phase will see Electrify America build charging stations in numerous metro areas in California where the company already has chargers. These upcoming charging stations, though, will be built in areas where electric-vehicle owners are expected to recharge their electrified vehicles frequently. More specifically, Electrify America will add new DC charging stations near apartment buildings and retail locations, since Level 2 chargers tend to be difficult to find at these locales.


Additionally, Electrify America will also be expanding the number of stations it has in existing metro areas, which include, San Diego-Carlsbad, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, and Fresno. The company will also expand to metro areas that are new to it, like Stockton, Visalia, Bakersfield, Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, and Santa Maria-Santa Barbara.


"This is the next exciting phase of our mission to increase EV infrastructure and awareness in California as the state works towards its commitment to help make 100 percent of new passenger vehicles zero-emission by 2035," said Giovanni Palazzo, president and chief executive officer of Electrify America. "This added investment will provide equitable access to expanded EV infrastructure, technology and services for communities across California, further supporting an electric mobility revolution across all regions of the state."

Long Beach To Become Green


Another large part of the upcoming investment phase involves Green Cities. This aspect of the plan will see Electrify America work with city officials and fleet operators in Long Beach and Los Angeles to better prepare these areas for a future where city buses run on electricity. The "Green Cities" portion of the plan is part of Electrify America's goal to reduce emissions in low-income and disadvantaged communities.


One large component of the latest California initiative is a $25 million investment into a Green City program that's directly aimed at Long Beach-Wilmington. The area has a fleet of roughly 18,000 drayage trucks that, one day, could become electric.


"Long Beach is proud to do our part in moving our country's transportation economy in a more sustainable, and environmentally focused direction," said Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia. "It's a great honor to be selected as an Electrify America Green City. This investment will go a long way in supporting our efforts to improve air quality in our highly impacted communities, and to support further upgrades to our fleets with more all-electric vehicles."


Electrify America's $800 million investment in California is part of Volkswagen's settlement with CARB and federal agencies for its diesel-powered vehicles that cheated in emissions testing. As part of the settlement, the German automaker has to invest $2 billion over 10 years. By the end of the second round, which is currently ongoing, Electrify America believes it will have 800 charging stations with a total of 3,500 DC fast chargers available for consumers to use.

Vineeth Joel Patel

Joel Patel has been covering all aspects of the automotive industry for four years as an editor and freelance writer for various websites. When it comes to cars, he enjoys covering the merger between technology and cars. In his spare time, Joel likes to watch baseball, work on his car, and try new foods