The Weekly 1.21⚡(EVI News #36) - Stage Set for Shift to 600kW. State-sponsored L2 Boosts. BC Hydro Launches V2G Bus Pilot. NEVI Plans/Construction Reboot.

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Good day, fellow charger spec plate checker 🧐 🔍

The charging world shook off a late summer lull this week, with a variety of headlines that bode well for EV infrastructure in the US and Canada. From the next level of power eyed by Mercedes-Benz and Alpitronic, to the resumption of NEVI activity and several utility-related items with great potential for fleets and home charging solutions, the usual dynamism of our sector was more evident than it has been in recent weeks.

On a sad note, our condolences go out to the families and loved ones of two important members of the EV community, EV Gateway CEO Mr. Reddy Mari and co-founder of EV Connect, David Hughes, both of whom passed away this week. Their influence will be missed.

Here’s your digest of the latest EV infrastructure developments across North America ⤵️

📢 MB-HPC to Bring 600kW DCFC to US Next Year

News - As noted briefly in last week’s edition, rumors that Mercedes-Benz High Power Charging (MB-HPC) will be switching up its hardware again proved to be correct. The emerging network is sticking with the now-ubiquitous Alpitronic brand, but leveling up the model line to deliver more power for North American EV drivers.

Numbers - After it led the push to 400kW charging late in 2023, 600kW is the new level that Mercedes-Benz could pull the industry towards. Alpitronic’s HYC1000 product is capable of pushing up to 1,000kW at the power cabinet level, which is then distributed across up to four dispensers, each of which can serve two fast-charging stalls. Power is allocated via smart load management.

Nuance - What was largely viewed as a fleet solution for North American deployment when shared at trade events earlier this year, the Alpitronic HYC1000 will now become the most powerful option available to US passenger EV drivers in the US and, hopefully, Canada.

Next Up - IONNA, perhaps? While the other OEM-backed network already has a significant development pipeline fully reliant on the HYC400, it’s not hard to see a role for Alpitronic’s highest power option emerging. Flagship Rechargery “Beacon” sites are yet to be unveiled and the thinner dispenser footprint could be attractive for urban/metro charging hubs. Mercedes-Benz looks like it will be the first to deliver, however, and we’ll share the first site as soon as permit-spotters uncover it. Check out Walter/tNAC’s latest MB-HPC network update here for a neatly packaged digest of all recent developments.

🔍 Charging Vendor Spotlight: EVolve NY

News - New York’s most prominent non-Tesla network extended its reach this week, with two new activations in Phelps, near the Finger Lakes region off I-90, and Findley Lake, close to the Pennsylvania border. EVolve NY energized its first station in 2020 and is operated by the New York Power Authority (NYPA), primarily with Electrify America as CPO.

Numbers - The EVolve NY network consists of 63 fast charging stations, most of which offer at least four DC ports at up to 350kW of power. Certain flagship locations, such as the North Hudson gateway hub pictured below, include a higher stall count, although this is the only location with a dedicated canopy to date.

Nuance - The network’s future is increasingly tied to the hardware and design choices of Electrify America, which has become the only charging partner opening new stations with NYPA in recent years. The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program has also catalyzed EVolve NY’s growth. 16 stations have been opened with the assistance of NEVI funds over the past 20 months, representing one-quarter of the network and boosting its credentials along the travel corridors of upstate New York and Long Island.

Next Up - Important new sites in New York City and more remote locations like Alexandria Bay will continue to extend the reach of EV travel across the state. The most recently stated target of the EVolve NY is to have 400 chargers in operation by “early 2026”. This goal appears within reach through a combination of finalizing planned NEVI stations and energizing large metro-area hubs, such as the 12-stall charging hub under construction at La Guardia airport.

🔌AC/DC: Duo of AC Charging Projects to Boost L2 Options in Michigan and San Francisco/Los Angeles

News: Two significant announcements, one from Moon Five Technologies in California and another from Current Charging in Michigan, will deliver hundreds of new L2 charging points at multi-family dwellings (MFD) across those states.

Numbers: 650+ new EV chargers will be deployed across the two projects, across 23 MFD properties in Michigan (Current Charging with DHS Management) and apartment complexes in Los Angeles and San Francisco (Moon Five with California Energy Commission). Current’s partnership should yield around 200 chargers, while Moon Five secured a $3.4M CEC grant for 450+ chargers in the two CA cities.

Nuance: While federal funding is gradually restored for DC fast charging commitments under the NEVI program, state-level funding will prove to be the catalyst for the (arguably more important) expansion of destination charging. The numbers are also informative here: where a few million dollars from NEVI adds between 10-20 fast charging ports at a handful of locations, that amount covers hundreds of L2 ports at potentially dozens of properties. It also delivers the most convenient aspect of EV ownership, charging where you sleep.

Next Up: The first installations in California are slated for early next year, with Moon Five accepting requests to join the waitlist on its website. Birmingham, MI-based Current Charging is expected to follow a similar timeline to begin its L2 deployment in its home state.

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🛣️ On the Road: This Week in DCFC

News - A more productive week of additions to the AFDC and notable locations announced by charging vendors, with Canadian infrastructure also shaking off a quiet couple of weeks. NEVI activity continues to pick up and Alaska is now on the active map, while New York added two new sites to close the gap on the top two.

Numbers - 309 DC charging ports at 47 charging locations in 24 states and provinces added to AFDC this week.

Notable New Stations + AFDC Additions:

🗽 After focusing on the emerging tussle between NEVI leaders Pennsylvania and Ohio in recent weeks, third-placed New York adds a reminder that the Empire State is still in the mix, with two new EVolve NY locations energized. Upstate activations in Findley Lake and Phelps bring the NY station count to 16 NEVI stations open, which is four behind PA/OH.

🔴 Tesla opened 16 Supercharger locations across nine states and two Canadian provinces, adding 228 charging stalls to the map. A bumper week was packed with notable Supercharger additions, such as the first NEVI station in Alaska in Trapper Creek, 32 new stalls in Oklahoma across two sites in Tulsa and Guthrie, and a 24-stall location in Huntington Beach, CA.

☀️ IONNA opened its first Rechargery in California, celebrated with a ribbon cutting by senior network and OEM executives in Vista, CA. The automaker-backed network also opened another Rechargery @ location at a Sheetz in Kutztown, PA.

🟠 Zero 60 energized a new ChargePoint station in partnership with GM Energy, adding 10 new stalls capable of up to 125kW (paired 62.5kW CPE250s) at a Safeway grocery store in the already DCFC dense location of Elk Grove, CA.

⚡No new activations on the network this week, but Pilot-Flying J officially celebrated passing 200 fast charging locations this summer and can now boast a network capable of “Coast-to-Coast Electric Travel” on their site, thanks to the most recent activation in Lordsburg, NM connecting the final stretch of the P-FJ locations on I-40.

🔶 After a summer of upgrades to open its Adventure Network to other EV models, Rivian gets back on track with new stations by energizing the latest RAN location in Tumalo, OR. The site is just north of Bend, a city with limited options for high-power DCFC, outside of Tesla Superchargers.

🔷 Koulomb opened a new eight stall station in Charlotte, NC, complete with solar canopy and vehicle vacuum positioned for use in the charging bays. Take a quick tour of the site (before it was commissioned), courtesy of Walter at The Network Architect Channel (tNAC).

⭕ Red-E added a new six stall station in Westport, MA, enhancing travel charging options between southern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. A new four stall station was also energized closer to the company’s HQ, at the Belmont Shopping Center in Detroit, MI.

🍁Petro Canada continued its upgrade program to existing locations with new ChargePoint hardware installed at its fueling station in Sherwood, AB.

To see how and where the leading charging vendors are expanding, check out The Network Architect Channel on YouTube for weekly DCFC updates.

📝 In the Pipeline - New Sites Planned/Permitted

📝 On the paper trail, Vermont, Texas, and Montana have all had NEVI plans for FY 2026 approved, paving the way for hundreds of stations in the early awards and solicitation phases. Many more states are expected to follow, after successful legal action over the summer months led to the program’s frozen funds being reinstated.

🚧 On the ground, NEVI first mover Ohio appears to be roused from its FHWA-induced period of inactivity, with construction spotted at two Meijer grocery store sites in Cincinnati and Kent, OH. This represents the first notable movement on the state’s NEVI plan since the 19th site was energized back in January. On the planning side, Minnesota’s updated NEVI plan has been shared, including fast-tracked stations expected over the next six months, weather conditions permitting. The latest plans from Montana, Nevada, Texas, Utah, and Vermont have also been approved.

🚨 IONNA confirmed fences up at two new locations in Georgia. Cordele and Forest Park, GA, will join the first location in Valdosta, which begins to connect the network’s southeastern US presence from Florida to North Carolina. In permitting, Rechargeries for Centennial, CO, and Bonney Lake, WA, were spotted by AlejandroEV66.

🔴 New US Tesla stations are confirmed in permitting by MarcoRP1, with Superchargers slated for Fountain Hills, AZ, Oxnard, CA, Sanford, FL, Happy Valley, OR, Maryville, TN, and Ellensburg, WA.

💲Pricing: Utility-led DCFC Delivers Rates 21% Below Standard Electrify America Sites in New York

News - As part of a wider analysis for our monthly EV charging price report, we looked at the difference in DCFC prices across the Northeast. An interesting disparity arose in New York, where sites operated by this week’s spotlight network, NYPA’s EVolve NY, posted average rates 21.3% lower than Electrify America’s non-NYPA stations in the state.

Numbers - The average price of EVolve NY locations comes in at a relatively reasonable $0.48/kWh, which is typically below both the national and regional average. Electrify America’s non-NYPA stations in the state average out at $0.61/kWh at their peak, or down to $0.59/kWh when off-peak rates (typically found on Long Island) are factored in.

Nuance - This disparity also emphasizes the value of membership plans, as Electrify America’s Pass+ plan actually shaves 25% off the network’s pricing. Although the membership costs $7 for one month, it pays for itself in one charging session and does not apply at partner sites like EVolve NY, making EA’s own sites marginally cheaper for members. Nonetheless, the disparity between “pull up and pay” rates is a gap that plays out across other states with utility-led EA fast charging, such as Rocky Mountain Power locations in Utah and APS stations in Arizona.

Next Up - Electrify America’s shift to time-of-use (TOU) rates has arrived at select Northeast stations in New York and New Jersey, further convoluting the calculations for EV drivers. In general, for travelers it’s EVolve NY that provides the most reliably reasonable prices without requiring a membership fee. For Tri-state area locals or rideshare drivers charging off-peak, however, regular EA stations are likely to be cheaper, when paired with the Pass+ membership.

🚛 Fleet Focus: BC Hydro Launches Vehicle-to-Grid Pilot with Lynch Bus Lines

News - BC Hydro has launched a pilot program to trial the value of electric school buses in real-world vehicle-to-grid (V2G) applications. Burnaby, BC-based Lynch Bus Lines will operate the electric buses with technical/infrastructure support from Vancouver-based FUSE Power Management.

Numbers - $200,000 is the amount that BC Hydro will add to the funding pot for this pilot, with NorthX Climate Tech providing $860,000 and PacifiCan providing $50,000.

Nuance - This expanded trial builds on BC Hydro’s first V2G pilot, which deployed one electric bus through Coast to Coast Experiences and Powertech Labs. At the time, it was also the first foray into vehicle-to-grid with EVs anywhere in Canada, though there have been subsequent pilots and significant interest in the potential of V2G in other EV-focused provinces, including Ontario and Québec.

Next Up - After completion of the pilot, Lynch can expand use of this electric school bus fleet for more than transportation. Potential applications include using the fleet as a mobile energy resource, supporting buildings during power outages or ensuring critical services remain online. V2G fleet functionality could also assist with demand management, adding to grid resilience during peak periods and emergencies.

🎧 Amped Up for Audio 🔌

In every edition, we recommend one of the best listens on electrification, energy, or something similarly EV-related.

This week saw the return of our fortnightly podcast on electric vehicles and infrastructure, Coast-to-Coast EVs, including an update on Walmart Energy’s progress from Landon West/The Arkansas eTraveler.

🎧 Walmart Energy + DCFC Dwell Time: Is Higher Power Essential or Overblown?

This episode explores the gold rush to a higher kW count for DC fast charging, as Mercedes-Benz touts megawatt charging for its concept cars and the company’s HPC network looks to bring a 600kW option to our shores next year. At a time when some argue the case for lower power and even L2 at locations like Walmart, the team discusses various use cases and appropriate dwell time for EV drivers at this kind of location.

🔋💯 Topping Off…

Here’s a selection of news items we couldn’t squeeze into other sections, followed by select EVI incentive program updates we think you’ll want to know about:

WeaveGrid partners with Oracle for potentially game-changing utility EV program acceleration

First deployment of its mixed charging/battery storage system shared by AUTEL 

EVerged confirmed as electrification partner for Florida State Athletics

Synop shares AC charging partnership with Montana’s Montage Big Sky resort 

California’s Hybrid/ZEV Truck & Bus Voucher Incentive Program (HVIP) is once again open open for applications

Latest round of Charge Ahead Colorado grant applications opens tomorrow (9/15)

Deadline Approaching! → $609,500 for public EV charging project in DC (by 9/22)

Clean Corridor Coalition (C3) issues RFI for $249M M-HDEV infrastructure grant on I-95 (CT/DE/MD/NJ areas) - deadline: 9/30/25

California’s FCCP incentives program is open for applications (deadline: 10/29/25)

If you found this edition useful, please share the value by passing it on to a friend, colleague, or family member with an interest in electrification.

See you next week ⚡

Cheers,

Steve / Plug & Play EV

🔔 Essential EV Follow - Jason Cortes (Field Advantage)

📍Charging Site of the Week: Walmart Energy (Checotah, OK)