Utilities in California recently issued requests for approval of electric vehicle-related projects, that in total are worth more than $1 billion.

Efforts for these projects are in-line with the state's goal of having 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles by 2025.

  • Edison International’s Southern California Edison (SCE) would like to collect $570 million from customers over five years
  • Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) seeks for $253 million
  • Sempra Energy’s San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) is applying for $244.1 million
Projects are pretty varied, but the bulk of investment seems to be on the charging infrastructure.


Southern California Edison ($570 million) proposals include:

  • Funding for medium- and heavy-duty vehicle charging infrastructure. As in the Charge Ready program, SCE would install infrastructure on a customer’s site and provide a rebate toward the purchase of the charging station. In addition to trucks, this program would support plug-in buses, forklifts and other off-road equipment. While it is not part of the current filing, SCE will be exploring options with the South Coast Air Quality Management District and other stakeholders for a zero-emission freight movement program for transporting freight from the Port of Long Beach to inland distribution hubs.
  • Rates designed to incentivize EV adoption. This attractive rate option for EV owners would eliminate demand charges during an introductory period and stimulate charging during periods of the day that benefit both customers and the grid (i.e., low-cost periods during the day to support integration of renewable energy).
A number of short-term pilot programs are also part of the package:

  • Customer rebate for residential charging station installation. SCE would provide a rebate to residential customers living in single-family residences or smaller multi-unit dwellings not covered in the Charge Ready program to install a “make-ready,” which is the electrical infrastructure required in a garage or at a parking space to support EV charging. The rebates would alleviate the cost of installing a new circuit and, for some customers, the cost of a new panel.
  • Building vehicle charging infrastructure for electric transit buses. Similar to the medium- and heavy-duty vehicle program, SCE is proposing a one-year pilot to install infrastructure and provide a rebate toward the purchase of the charging stations for buses. This project will focus specifically on progressive transit agencies that are already preparing to receive electric buses and will provide charging infrastructure to speed adoption of electric transit buses.
  • Port electrification projects. At the Port of Long Beach, SCE would install charging infrastructure for the electrification of equipment used to unload and move goods containers from ships to off-port transportation vehicles currently powered by diesel engines.
  • Building urban DC Fast Charger (DCFC) clusters. SCE would install five DC fast-charge sites in urban areas. Each site would have up to five dual-port charging stations for a total of 50 DCFC ports. The sites would be located in publicly accessible urban locations — for example, near a corridor, downtown or in high-density apartments.
  • Bonus reward to rideshare/taxi drivers who use EVs. SCE proposes a monetary reward to rideshare and taxi drivers who use an EV and exceed a specified number of rides during a given time period. The pilot promotes the use of EVs in rideshare services, increases EV miles traveled and introduces more passengers to the experience of riding in an EV


PG&E’s ($253 million) proposal addresses three specific areas:

  • Expanding the electrification for fleets with medium- and heavy-duty vehicles including school buses, transit agencies and delivery fleets that often use diesel, a highly polluting fuel. To address air pollution issues in the state, PG&E suggests a five-year project with a budget of $211 million that would build “make-ready” electric infrastructure for medium- to heavy-duty and off-road fleets.
  • Responding to consumer demand for fast-charging stations, which can refuel EVs in 20-30 minutes, PG&E proposes to complement state and privately funded fast charger deployments with new electric infrastructure. In prior years, this type of infrastructure has been slow to develop due to the high costs and complexity of installations. The company’s five-year $22 million recommendation includes offering a significant rebate toward the purchase of a fast charger for sites in disadvantaged communities.PG&E will utilize the findings from a new report and interactive map developed in partnership with the University of California, Davis to support and facilitate the installation of fast chargers in Northern and Central California.
  • Exploring new uses for vehicle electrification through five, one-year projects for an overall budget of $20 million. These include a range of projects for both consumers and heavier-duty vehicles and focus on: simplifying charging for residential customers; exploring commercial smart vehicle charging; and requesting third parties to submit potential electrification projects to the company.


San Diego Gas & Electric ($244.1 million) notes:

San Diego Gas and Electric's Plug In Prius

  • Residential Charging Program: Installation of up to 90,000 charging stations at single family homes throughout the company's service area;
  • Airport Electrification: Installation of up to 45 charging ports to enable electrification of approximately 90 new pieces of ground support equipment at San Diego International Airport;
  • Port Electrification: Installation of several electric vehicle charging stations and research meters to study the charging habits of heavy and medium-duty electric trucks and forklifts at the Port of San Diego;
  • Fleet Delivery Trucks: Installation of grid-integrated charging stations for about 90 fleet delivery vehicles at approximately six business locations;
  • Electrify Local Highways: Grid-integrated charging infrastructure to four Park-and-Ride locations;
  • Green Taxi/Rideshare/Shuttles: Incentives to purchase electric taxis and shuttles and install charging stations at five locations frequently traveled by taxis, shuttles and rideshare vehicles. 50 EV drivers from rideshare companies would receive fueling credits on their electric bills;
  • Dealership Incentives: EV educational programs and financial incentives for the sale of EVs.

Source: Bloomberg and Green Car Congress

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