Coke, Facebook, 14 Others Pledge Workplace Charging

The Coca-Cola Company, Facebook and Dell are among 16 companies that have just joined the Department of Energy’s Workplace Charging Challenge, which aims to expand the availability of workplace vehicle charging for American workers. Three new corporate partners have also joined the Department’s National Clean Fleets Partnership.

By joining the Workplace Charging Challenge, partners commit to assess workforce plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) charging demands, and then develop and implement a plan to install workplace charging infrastructure for at least one major worksite location.

The challenge aims to achieve a tenfold increase in the number of US employers offering workplace charging, over five years. The initiative also supports the broader efforts of the EV Everywhere Grand Challenge, announced last year by President Obama, which aims to make electric vehicles as affordable and convenient for the American family as gasoline-powered vehicles within the next decade.

In addition to the above companies, AVL, Bentley Systems, Biogen Idec, Bloomberg LP, the City of Sacramento, The Hartford, The Hertz Corporation, National Grid, New York Power Authority, NRG Energy, OSRAM SYLVANIA, Raytheon Company and Southern California Edison have also signed up to the initiative. Earlier this year, 13 companies, including Google, Ford and GE announced their commitment to the program.

The news comes as three new corporate partners – AMP Americas, Kwik Trip and Waste Management – announce their membership in the Energy Department’s National Clean Fleets Partnership.

The public-private partnership aims to assist the nation’s largest fleet operators in reducing the amount of gasoline and diesel they use nationwide.

Announced by President Obama in 2011, the partnership aims to speed the deployment of clean, energy efficient vehicles and the infrastructure to support their widespread use. Through the partnership, Energy Department experts provide each company with specialized resources, technical expertise, and support to develop a strategy to reduce the fleet’s oil consumption. The Department also helps connect partners with clean fuel providers and equipment manufacturers where their fleets operate.

The new partners announced this week join with 18 other major national companies, including AT&T, UPS, FedEx, PepsiCo and Verizon, that are part of the project.