Rural Electric Cooperatives Take the Lead on Boosting Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure | Article

One of the biggest hurdles to electric vehicle (EV) adoption in rural areas is a feeling known as range anxiety, or the fear of being unable to find a charging station for your EV before it runs out of battery power. Many rural families live in “charging deserts” where there is a lack of public fast-charging stations to plug in their electric cars. Major metro areas have 500 to over 1,000 public outlets per 25 square miles, while the majority of rural areas and small towns have none.

Rural electric cooperatives (co-ops), which were created in 1936 to help power rural areas, can be at the forefront of the push to fill this charging gap, and thereby help address climate change by spurring the transition to electric vehicles across the rural landscape. In the United States, 900 co-ops serve 50 percent of the country’s landmass and power more than 40 million homes and businesses. As nonprofits and member-owned entities, co-ops are able to be creative in their funding and deployment mechanisms to best meet the needs of their customers. By taking advantage of financing programs and federal resources, rural co-ops can help install electric vehicle charging stations in rural towns and roads, knitting together the nationwide EV network. They also stand to benefit from increased electricity demand.

One of the biggest pots of funding that rural co-ops have at their disposal is the recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58), which provides $7.5 billion to create a standardized national network of 500,000 public electric-vehicle charging stations. When completed, this network will contain more than 10 times the existing number of public charging stations. The Act also includes $5 billion to help states build EV infrastructure along designated Alternative Fuel Corridors, particularly along interstate highways. Another $2.5 billion is allocated to the creation of a grant program to further increase EV charging stations, particularly in rural and underserved communities.

Electric vehicle charger in Trinidad, Colorado. Photo Credit: San Isabel Electric Association

Levels of EV Charging

EV charging stations come in different sizes based on their capacity and power. In general, Level 1 charging stations are used for at-home charging, as they connect to common home 120-volt electric wall sockets. Because these connections offer low voltage, completely topping off a car’s batteries takes between 20 and 40 hours depending on the type of car. Level 2 stations use higher voltage capacity (208/240 Volts AC) to offer more juice to the car, reducing the charging time to about 8 hours for a full charge. This translates to about 25 miles of range per hour of charging. Level 2 charging stations are typically found at shopping malls, office buildings and multi-family community spaces. Fast charging stations or Direct Current Fast Charging (DCFC) stations offer 400-800 Volts of charging capacity, which is only found in public EV charging stations. In general, DCFC stations provide 200 miles of range in 30 minutes of charging time.

Two rural electric cooperatives, Rappahannock Electric Cooperative in Virginia and San Isabel Electric Association in Colorado, are leading the way with providing electric charging infrastructure for their customers and can serve as case studies for how other co-ops can continue this work.

Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (Virginia)

Rappahannock Electric Cooperative, a utility serving more than 170,000 members across 22 counties in northern and central Virginia, offers rebates and special EV rates to help its members go electric. To meet increasing demand and promote EVs, Rappahannock has installed EV charging stations at its headquarters and regional offices. Rappahannock Electric also offers rebates to its members to encourage EV adoption. The co-op has a residential electric vehicle charging station program, where participants receive a $7 rebate for every kilowatt/hour charged to their EVs during an off-peak charging window, such as in the middle of the day.

“Utilities are becoming the sources to go to when thinking about going electric,” Joyce Bodoh, Rappahannock Electric Cooperative’s energy solutions and clean energy director, said. “We are a well-known and respected energy expert in the community which we can translate to EV technologies as we expand to electrify transportation in our rural areas by working to install EV charging stations. We are offering EV education by telling our members how they can save fuel costs—and reduce overall energy burdens—if they choose to buy an electric vehicle.”

Demand for electric cars is increasing in north and central Virginia, but there is a lack of public charging stations. “While our service territory is crisscrossed by four highways, we have yet to see large, public, fast-charging stations being built in our rural areas,” said Bodoh. “Because we have a lot of commuters from the D.C. and Richmond metro areas, it makes a lot of sense to promote and offer incentives for our members to install electric vehicle charging stations. These charging stations can create economic development, enhance EV adoption, and overall provide service and convenience to our members.”

Virginia is on track to receive $106 million over the next five years through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for electric charging infrastructure, and Rappahannock Electric is well placed to apply for a share of those funds.

San Isabel Electric Association (Colorado)

Headquartered in Pueblo West, Colorado, and founded in 1938, San Isabel Electric Association serves 50,000 members across large rural communities that extend south to the New Mexico border. The co-op's territory is larger than the areas of Connecticut, Vermont, and Rhode Island combined.

DCFC charging stations installed in Colorado. Photo Credit: San Isabel Electric Association

For San Isabel, installing electric charging stations is seen as a valuable member service, as it helps to increase EV adoption and improve access to charging stations for those who need it most. To date, the co-op has installed seven public EV charging stations, including two Level 2 charging stations at their headquarters and their satellite offices in Trinidad and two DCFC fast-charging stations. The initial fast-charging station was installed in a property right off a major highway and was funded by a combination of contributions from San Isabel Electric, Pueblo County, a Charge Ahead Colorado grant, and a donation from a local bank. Such partnerships between states, utilities, and banks can help overcome high upfront costs, as DCFC stations can cost up to $100,000, including providing power and addressing right-of-way issues.

“We started out with a little trial and error, but the chargers at our offices and the one going in off of the highway were very intentional,” Laura Getts, San Isabel Electric Association business development manager, said. “It has been a combination of seeking out high-traffic pockets of our territory without a charger for at least 30 miles and responding to members and partner organizations, especially local governments and non-profit entities, that have reached out about installing charging stations.”

San Isabel Electric boasts an on-bill financing program called Empower, which helps members overcome the upfront cost of clean energy upgrades by financing energy efficiency retrofits, heat pumps, solar panels, and electric charging stations. While the co-op offers Level 2 charging stations for free to residential members, they must cover the installation and labor costs, and any electric panel upgrades. They can do so through the on-bill financing program, which requires no upfront payment. San Isabel also offers rebates of up to $5,000 for DCFC stations.

Colorado is expected to receive $57 million over five years in electric charging infrastructure funds through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and San Isabel Electric Association is looking to apply for a grant.

Author: Miguel Yañez-Barnuevo