More electric vehicle charging stations are coming to Maine paid for with a federal grant allocated to serve EV drivers across the state.
In total, 582 EV chargers will be installed at more than 70 sites in 63 Maine cities and towns, according to an announcement from Gov. Janet Mills’ administration. There will be 520 Level 2 and 62 Level 3 fast-charging stations.
Mills announced this week that $15 million in federal funding under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has been awarded to the state from the U.S. Department of Transportation for expanding the installation of EV chargers.
“Our goal is to have enough fast chargers around the state that you really don’t have to worry about the likelihood of a battery running out,” said Joyce Taylor, Chief Engineer of the Maine Department of Transportation. “We want people to be able to charge quickly and to know that it’s reliable.”
The new federal funding will be committed for EV chargers in Presque Isle, Fort Kent, Medway, Machias, Houlton, Ashland, Danforth, Van Buren, Baileyville, Augusta, Searsport, Waldoboro, Rockland, and Brunsiwick, according to the Mills Administration.
The goal of the funding is to commit EV chargers to rural parts of the state, Taylor said.
Around $3 million in private and state funding matches will bring the $15 million Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds up to $18 million, which is about five years worth of funding in one year, according to Taylor.
The new federal grant almost matches the $19 million in National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program funding that was awarded in 2021 to be spent over five years.
Back in Nov. 2021, the U.S. Congress enacted the Infrastructure and Jobs Act that included $7.5 billion to the infrastructure program to build a national network of EV chargers.
“We got a system that the state and Efficiency Maine Trust have been working on together and we are chugging along getting this stuff out the door and getting things implemented and in place,” Taylor said.
People will pay to use the EV charging stations, but businesses and municipalities can choose to make using charging stations free on a case-by-case basis, Taylor said.
How much people will pay to use the EV charging stations hasn’t been determined.
So far, new EV chargers have been installed and are available at locations in Ellsworth, Bangor, Belfast, Newport, Fairfield, Auburn, and Lewiston, according to the Mills administration.
