US invests $1.3 billion in charging and alternative fuelling infrastructure
The US government has launched a $1.3 billion round of funding to build charging stations and alternative fuelling infrastructure (hydrogen and gas) in urban and rural areas and along designated highways, motorways and arterial roads. Applications for the latest round of funding will be accepted until 28 August 2024.
This investment marks the largest funding round to date under the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Discretionary Grant Programme, which has a total budget of USD 2.5 billion and runs in addition to the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Programme, which recently announced another $150 million to repair ageing charging infrastructure in the USA.
The CFI is split into two distinct areas: Community charging and fuelling grants, as well as alternative fuel corridor grants. Community charging is what one would expect: the programme is designed to deploy publicly accessible EV charging infrastructure and hydrogen, propane, and natural gas fueling infrastructure in urban and rural communities. The Alternative Fuel Corridor, or AFC, as the communication refers to it, is designed to provide routes through the US, which will feature publicly accessible EV charging infrastructure and hydrogen, propane, and natural gas fueling infrastructure.
The previous round of CFI funding was released at the beginning of 2024, and resulted in 47 projects across 22 states and Puerto Rico being funded to build about 7,500 charging ports. About six times that number of applications were received, showing great support for the initiative in the USA. Applicants from this round will also be contacted with the new funding round, and over $520 million from the current funding pot is reserved for “unselected first-round applicants who may be reconsidered for the current round of funding.”
“By helping connect our nation’s communities and corridors, the Joint Office and FHWA are modernizing the nation’s infrastructure and creating new job and transportation opportunities,” said Joint Office Executive Director, Gabe Klein. “Doubling down on electrification is more important than ever to our economic prosperity and national security. With the rest of the world pushing down on the accelerator; we are moving fast to position the United States the global leader in the future that everyone is racing toward.”
The timing for the new grant issuance is impressive, as the US government announced $100 million in subsidies just a few weeks ago. This funding pot was designated for small and medium vehicle manufacturers to help electrify their products. It is also important for the US to quickly build up an electric vehicle ecosystem considering that imports from China will not likely be popular due to the added import tariff. Across the Atlantic, a similar proposition is underway in Europe, however, the final decision appears to have been postponed until after the pending European Parliament elections.
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