ChargePoint Network
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Forget five-minute fill-ups. What seems to drive many electric car drivers crazy is making sure the charger they find has the right connector, how fast the charger is (in kilowatts), and whether they have the right credentials to activate it. Without a single one of these parameters, you may not be able to charge. (With most charging done at home or at work, however, most electric-car drivers rarely have to visit public charging stations.) Now the largest charging network, ChargePoint, has announced a roaming partnership with Greenlots, another of the oldest charging networks in the U.S. to...
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EVgo, Chargepoint annual reports show growth in electric-car charging
Seven years and almost 800,000 cars after the first modern electric cars went on sale, there's still a lot wrong with the national charging infrastructure in the U.S. There's little central planning, little standardized signage or public signposting, virtually no awareness among non-EV drivers, and...
John Voelcker -
Electric car charging on the road has to be way, way better than it is today
A couple of weeks ago, we charged a 2018 Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid 15 times within two days. It was part of a contest during a two-day press drive for the car—though we were beaten by the team that charged their Niro a stunning 31 times in little more than 30 hours. But our experience...
John Voelcker -
Do cities have enough electric-car charging stations; are highways the 'last hurdle'?
The availability of charging stations for electric cars, or lack of it, is often cited as one of the primary reasons holding back widespread adoption. After all, if you're going to spend tens of thousands of dollars on a brand-new automobile, you want to be sure it'll get you where you want to go...
Mark Stevenson -
ChargePoint launches electric-car charging activated by smartphone
Electric-car charging network ChargePoint has announced a new feature that allows electric vehicle (EV) owners to begin charging their car using near-field communication (NFC) and their smartphone. This doesn’t mean your phone itself is capable of charging your car, of course, though that...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Gas stations aren't a model for electric-car charging: ChargePoint CEO
For more than a century, motorists have been accustomed to gas stations, which provide places to stop and fill up a car with fuel, in recent years with larger and larger convenience stores attached. The model is so commonplace, it may mean drivers don't know electric-car charging stations even...
Sean Szymkowski -
It's been a big week for the ChargePoint electric-car charging network. On June 27, it announced it would take over management and operation of General Electric's charging network of 1,800 commercial and roughly 8,000 residential charging sites, made up of its DuraStations and WattStations. Then, on June 28, it issued a second release, saying it had closed $43 million of additional funding with a contribution from Siemens—bringing the latest financing round, known as Series G and led by Daimler, to a total of $125 million. DON'T MISS: ChargePoint launches Express Plus modular...
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Electric-car charging networks spin out, merge, and go global
Much like the cell-phone network industry in the mid-1990s, the electric-car charging industry is on a fast pace of network expansions and mergers. EV charging companies are on the verge of rapid global growth as utility companies and large multinational corporations put up big money, according to...
Green Car Reports -
Michigan utility cancels electric-car charging stations after opposition
In multiple states, electric utilities are beginning to establish networks of electric-car charging stations. But plans for such a network in Michigan recently hit a roadblock. Last week, local utility Consumers Energy withdrew its request to install public electric-car charging stations at an...
Stephen Edelstein -
Chevy Bolt EV, Hyundai Ioniq show slow, confusing state of 'fast' charging today
When you drive into a U.S. gas station to pump gas, every pump works exactly the same way. The only choice to make is which grade of gasoline you want. If you want diesel fuel, of course, you may have to find one of the six out of 10 stations that offer it. DC fast charging for electric cars isn't...
John Voelcker -
Chevy Bolt EV: 800-mile trip in 238-mile electric car shows challenges remain
With about twice the range of any non-Tesla electric car, the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV has generated a great deal of excitement and won numerous awards over the last year. In combination with a nascent DC fast-charging infrastructure, it offers the possibility of much longer road trips powered solely...
John Voelcker -
Daimler invests in ChargePoint to grow electric-car charging in Europe, joins BMW
As automakers produce electric cars in greater numbers, public charging infrastructure will become even more crucial to lure new buyers and convince them the cars can be practical. Some automakers have already invested in charging infrastructure, while others are just starting to contemplate public...
Stephen Edelstein -
Relatively short ranges and long charging times are two of the main factors restraining more widespread electric-car adoption. To address the range issue, automakers are expected to launch a batch of more-affordable long-range electric cars over the next few years, a shift heralded by the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV and the upcoming Tesla Model 3. At the same time, automakers along with charging-infrastructure companies are planning higher-powered stations to allow for faster charging. DON'T MISS: ChargePoint launches Express Plus modular fast-charging hardware The move toward faster electric-car...
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ChargePoint launches Express Plus modular fast-charging hardware
It's an interesting moment to contemplate the future of DC fast charging for electric cars right now. Electric cars with 200 miles or more of range are starting to hit the market, with half a dozen expected to be in showrooms three years hence. And international standards groups are working to...
John Voelcker -
Battle over VW's $2 billion fund for electric-car charging: sorting out the questions
Yesterday, federal judge Charles Breyer signed the final agreement committing Volkswagen to buy back or modify the 465,000 TDI 2.0-liter diesel vehicles that are the main focus of the VW diesel scandal. As part of that settlement, Volkswagen has also committed to providing $2 billion in funds to...
John Voelcker -
ChargePoint adds wait-list feature for electric-car charging stations
ChargePoint is rolling out a wait-list feature on all of its public charging stations.
Stephen Edelstein -
ChargePoint, EVgo electric-car charging networks get more investment
ChargePoint and NRG EVgo are getting additional private funding.
Stephen Edelstein -
How To Wire A New Garage For Electric-Car Charging: What You Need To Know
One of the more daunting perceived obstacles to driving a plug-in electric car seems to be the need for a home charging station. While plug-in hybrids can be recharged overnight using their 120-Volt charging cords, battery-electric drivers should really have access to a 240-Volt Level 2 charging...
John Voelcker -
ChargePoint says its Express 100 station will be one of the cheapest available.
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Top 10 Cities For Electric Cars: San Francisco Leads, But It's Not All California
San Francisco is the top U.S. city for electric cars, according to ChargePoint.
Stephen Edelstein -
Kansas City Power & Light To Build 1,000 Electric-Car Charging Sites
Kansas City Power & Light says its charging-site project is the largest ever undertaken by a U.S. utility.
Stephen Edelstein -
Electric-Car Fast-Charging Networks: Competition Heats Up
It's always interesting to reporters when a news story produces unsolicited counterpoints from affected parties. Yesterday's announcement of the agreement among BMW, Volkswagen, and ChargePoint to install roughly 100 electric-car DC fast-charging stations by the end of the year spawned two separate...
John Voelcker -
BMW, VW, And ChargePoint To Build 100 CCS Fast-Charging Sites For Electric Cars
As electric-car drivers know, Nissan and Tesla remain far ahead of other carmakers in availability of DC fast-charging locations for their cars. Now, growing sales of U.S. and German plug-in models that use a different standard have led their owners to complain about the lack of sites to...
John Voelcker -
ChargePoint To Release Home Charging Station For Electric Cars
ChargePoint, which operates a network of public charging stations for plug-in electric cars, announced today that it would offer a home charging station this summer. The ChargePoint Home, as it's logically dubbed, has a sleek modern design--and it's compact, at only about the size of a tablet...
John Voelcker