US-based regulated public utility firm San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) will put in place electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure at up to 550 business and multi-family sites in the Californian region under its pilot program Electric Vehicle Grid-Integration.
In that direction, the SDG&E will work in association with environmental groups, electric vehicle service providers, automakers and labor bodies, among others, as per an agreement made for the project. It has been sent to California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for review and a final decision is likely later this year.
Every location will be having 10 chargers, adding up to 5,550 units, with at least 10% of those finding way to economically disadvantaged communities.
The initiative also envisages offering special rates with a view to encourage charging at optimal times.
SDG&E's senior vice president for power supply Jim Avery said: "We are very pleased to enter into this agreement with such a diverse group of stakeholders all working together to promote clean electric vehicles.
"More than 50% of SDG&E's residential customers live in multi-family communities, where only a small fraction currently has access to charging. To ensure charging is accessible to all customers, our pilot will address gaps like this in the market."
The initiative highlighted by the agreement pictures the pilot project as instrumental towards realizing Governor Jerry Brown's objective of reaching 1.5 million zero emission vehicles on California roads by 2025.
Some of the stakeholders include Natural Resources Defense Council, Environmental Defense Fund, Sierra Club, California Coalition of Utility Employees, Greenlining Institute, ChargePoint, NRG EV Services, Smart Grid Services Siemens, Plug in America, General Motors, Honda Motors, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, KN Grid, CALSTART, the Center for Sustainable Energy and the Green Power Institute.