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The US government is investing $521 million to increase the spread of EV charging stations in line with its plan to have 500,000 chargers by 2030.
The Biden administration recently claimed the number of EV charging stations in the US is growing at a steady fast pace, and 1,000 new chargers were being added each week. It announced the total number of charging ports have nearly doubled — from roughly 100,000 to 192,000 — since 2021 when the current administration first assumed office.
These growth numbers, based on coinciding remarks by the US Department of Transport (DOT), Department of Energy (DOE), and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), are in line with the Biden-Harris administration’s vision to add 500,000 electric chargers by 2030. In line with the broader ambition, the administration is now promising grants worth $521 million to 29 states, Washington, DC, and two federally recognized tribes. The money will fund the installation of 9,200 chargers.
The grants are allocated under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and are being distributed through various federal incentive programs, such as the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program and the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program. Notably, this is the second round of disbursal, following $800 million promised in May this year. To receive their respective funding from the FHWA, qualifying states and territories must chalk plans for installation of EV chargers through various public-partnership outreach programs and get them approved.
The multi-billion dollar investments are intended to fuel aggressive expansions under the federal directives, especially to allay concerns about EVs. These include longer refueling times than traditional combustion engine vehicles and constant battery anxiety, which can be seen impacting EV sales throughout the US, which are growing at a reduced rate compared to previous years. This has led to leading EV companies, including poster child Tesla, posting higher losses than ever and traditional automakers like Ford delaying their plans to further electrify the fleet.
While other EV-only manufacturers such as Rivian and Polestar are gaining traction, industry analysis shows the availability of public EV chargers has not met the growth rate of the industry. Even with the Biden-Harris administration pouring billions into developing a strong network of EV chargers, a handful have become operational. For instance, only seven chargers across four states were actually found to be operational as of earlier this year.
Further complicating the matter is the types of chargers deployed at these claimed charging points. The DOE’s own data shows there are 183,099 (not quite the 192,000 claimed) charging ports across roughly 67,000 locations. However, less than a fourth of these chargers are actually DC fast chargers, which allow for quicker replenishing of EV batteries. The remaining are Level 2 AC chargers which take several hours to charge vehicles, and are therefore less reliable for cross-country road trips. Additionally, the majority of these EV charging stations are operated by private players, with ChargePoint and Tesla dominating the share with their open charging solutions.
Despite this, the current goal remains to encourage EV adoption in rural areas and among underprivileged communities. However, the reality may be not as promising as the government agencies indicate.
