Concurrently, Governor Kulongoski will announce that the state will extend the system of I-5 corridor fast chargers from Eugene south to the California border creating a system of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations along the entire length of Interstate 5 in Oregon.
“Oregon is leading the West Coast in the adoption of EV infrastructure,” stated Jonathan Read, CEO of ECOtality, Inc. “With this announcement, residents will be able to travel the entire state of Oregon, from the Washington border in the north to the California border in the south, and can rely on the EV infrastructure ECOtality is installing. In the future, ECOtality hopes to expand our deployment on the I-5 corridor to link the West Coast from Mexico to Canada.”
“Our vision for Oregon is to create an electrified highway so that Oregonians, and our visitors, can travel throughout our state on business and leisure using the next generation of clean, electric vehicles,” said Governor Ted Kulongoski. “With the partnership of the federal government, our utility companies, local governments and private companies like ECOtality, we are quickly turning that vision into a reality.”
ECOtality recently unveiled its infrastructure plans for Northwestern Oregon, which included potential locations for more than 1,100 publicly available charging stations. As part of the plan, the company will place approximately 20 stations in Medford and Ashland, providing needed publicly available charging stations for electric vehicles that will be arriving in the area after January 2011. A large part of the expansion into Southern Oregon is thanks to the support from local area stakeholders, the Rogue Valley Clean Cities Coalition, and the newest EV Project national partner, PacifiCorp.
"Our customers in the Rogue Valley and throughout Oregon are showing their interest in electric vehicles,” said Pat Egan, vice president of customer and community affairs for Pacific Power. “We are going to support that interest with our partnership with ECOtality to make charging stations easy and convenient to use.”
Rogue Valley Clean Cities has a key role in Southern Oregon in reducing dependency on imported petroleum. Working with alternative energy solution providers, like ECOtality, the organization is researching alternative fuels for vehicles, including electricity.
“Electric vehicles are a material component to realizing the goal of Rogue Valley Clean Cities’ federal mandate to reduce dependency on imported petroleum. Partnerships with companies like ECOtality are key to getting these vehicles on the road," said Michael Montero, Board Chair of the Rogue Valley Clean Cities Coalition. "Electric vehicles will play a meaningful role in reducing transportation-related air pollution in the Rogue Valley. We are excited to collaborate with the public-private initiatives that promote their adoption and bring EVs to the Rogue Valley."
In a press conference later today, ECOtality will elaborate on its plans to install charging stations, and will also reveal the residential Blink Network electric vehicle charging station unit that will be installed in the homes of EV Project participants. Launched earlier this year, Blink smart, networked charging stations are a key component of the rich charging infrastructure that is at the heart of The EV Project’s goals.
“The EV infrastructure that ECOtality provides allows EV users the freedom to travel without limitations,” added Don Karner, President of ECOtality North America. “The expansion in Oregon is a step closer in ECOtality’s plan to provide for the national movement toward electric vehicles.”
ECOtality is tasked with supervising the construction of the largest deployment of EV infrastructure to date. The $230 million public-private initiative is funded with a $114.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The EV Project includes 16 cities and major metropolitan areas in six states, and will result in the installation of approximately 15,000 charging stations by June 2011.
ECOtality, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECTY), headquartered in San Francisco, California, is a leader in clean electric transportation and storage technologies. Through innovation, acquisitions, and strategic partnerships, ECOtality accelerates the market applicability of advanced electric technologies to replace carbon-based fuels.
