Italian energy giant Enel SpA said it plans to add 10,000 electric-vehicle fast chargers in the U.S. by 2030, an effort to capitalize on the Biden administration’s efforts to switch more drivers to greener cars.
If Enel follows through on the plan, which it announced on Thursday, it would almost double the number of public fast chargers available to all drivers in the U.S. The availability of such chargers is considered one of the key requisites for the wider adoption of electric vehicles.
The Biden administration this week proposed new, tougher tailpipe emissions restrictions intended to accelerate the switch to EVs. New standards for light-duty vehicles would apply to the 2027 to 2032 model years.
Enel said Thursday that it expects to add at least two million chargers overall this decade in North America. Most of that new gear would come from selling at-home chargers that repower an EV battery over several hours, though its plans for building public fast chargers would make it one of the largest operators in that market.
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Chris Baker, head of charging subsidiary Enel X Way North America, said that government incentives and an uptick in EV adoption further convinced the company that it was time to enter the public charging market.
"We can come in and make a big commitment and take a long-term view on it," Mr. Baker said. "It’s an infrastructure play." He didn’t disclose the size of the investment.
At-home charging is the cheapest way to fuel but it takes time, while fast chargers can repower a car battery in about 30 minutes. Prices vary depending on EV efficiency and the electricity market, but a fast charge can cost around $13 for a midsize car to travel 100 miles.
The U.S. has around 11,500 fast-charging ports now that are open to any kind of vehicle, while EV market leader Tesla Inc. has a network for its own drivers with about 18,700, according to government data.
Enel’s fast-charging build-out is planned in the U.S., where the government has put billions on the table to try to create a national highway network of the equipment to ease "range anxiety," the stress that drivers have about running out of juice on longer road trips.
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The Biden administration has started giving states $7.5 billion to fund charging build-outs, money included in the $1 trillion infrastructure bill passed by Congress in 2021. Tax credits for installing EV chargers also were approved as part of last year’s Inflation Reduction Act. Enel would be in line to qualify for government funding.
Until now, Enel’s charging business has been focused on selling at-home and private commercial equipment in North America, though it has a large public charging network in Europe. Much of its work in Mexico is focused on fleet charging. Enel North America, another of its subsidiaries, is also a large developer of renewable energy and battery projects in the U.S. and is making a massive push into solar-panel manufacturing there.
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The availability and reliability of fast chargers has been a hangup for wider EV adoption. Adding fast chargers is complex because of the large electric load and amount of costly infrastructure needed, but a rush of investment announcements have come in the wake of the new U.S. laws.
