Ecotality Launches 1,100 EV Stations in Oregon

The installation of more than 1,100 public charging points for electric vehicles (EVs) started in Oregon today.

EV infrastructure company Ecotality started the installation of its Blink Level 2 charging stations with a launch event outside of Portland. The 1,100 stations will be located in Portland, Salem, Corvallis, Eugene, Medford and Ashland, creating a chain of charge points along the length of the Oregon portion of Interstate-5.

The Oregon rollout is part of The EV Project, which the company calls the largest rollout of EV infrastructure in U.S. history. It will see Ecotality install infrastructure to support more than 8,300 EVs in 18 U.S. cities and metropolitan areas in six states and the District of Columbia. The project is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy through a federal stimulus grant of $114.8 million, matched by private investment for a total cost of $230 million.

Already EcoTality has installed its Blink systems in San Diego and Los Angeles.

Nissan is coordinating its rollout of the all-electric Leaf to cities receiving Ecotality stations. Last July Nissan said the first Leafs will go to consumers in California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona and Tennessee.

ECOtality will monitor the energy usage and output of charging stations to determine a viable method for mass adoption of electric vehicles and empower the smart grid, the company said.

“The first installations of Blink home charging stations mark the start of a new age for EVs, and we are excited to continue to drive consumer EV adoption not only in Oregon but across the country,” said Jonathan Read, CEO of ECOtality. “Today we move from planning to implementation, and we thank our project partners in Oregon for their efforts in bringing charging stations to the places where Oregonians live, work, eat and play.”

Portland General Electric (PGE), a participant in The EV Project, is helping lead regional efforts in electric transportation.

“We expect most of our customers to charge up their electric vehicles at home so today’s residential charging station installation marks a major milestone in putting in the necessary infrastructure to support our EV-driving customers,” said Joe Barra, director of business model and program development at PGE.

The units can also be installed indoors or outdoors at commercial locations, Ecotality said.

Ecotality recently announced the start of mass manufacturing of the Blink stations at the Roush manufacturing facility outside of Detroit.