First Electric Vehicle Charging Station Debuts

Electric Vehicles (EV) are not quite widespread yet, however that hasn’t stopped Portland from becoming the first North American city to establish a public-use rapid-charging station for EVs.

The EV charging station, manufactured by Takasago, a subsidiary of Japanese network technology firm NEC, was recently unveiled by Portland General Electric. Their station can charge an electric vehicle’s battery to 80% capacity within 20 to 30 minutes as it is powered by lithium-ion batteries. Other comparable charging stations around the world often require a 110-volt station 8 to 12 hours to fully charge, while a 220-volt station can take 4 to 8 hours.

Oregon is one of five states in a federal pilot project developing infrastructure for electric cars. The station was showcased while charging the Nissan Leaf, an all-electric model the Japanese automaker will release in December. The Leaf gets 100 miles per charge and Nissan estimates it will cost about $25,000 after a federal tax credit. For more information see Takasago’ website.

Uncle Sam’s about to Pay You $10K to Kick the Oil Habit

As oil continues to flow into the Gulf, it is becoming increasingly clear that this environmental disaster will be a major sticking point for voters come the elections in November.

Hence why we’re now seeing new House and Senate bills that, if passed, will increase incentives for electric vehicles. Albeit, the timing is suspect, but if this helps bolster support for electric vehicles and makes us some money in the process then why not!

The House legislation offers $800 million to five designated regions with the intention of getting 700,000 electric cars on the road within six years. The Senate legislation would pony up to $10,000 tax credits for electric car buyers in 15 metropolitan areas.

The legislation also bumps up the tax credit for the installation of electric vehicle charging stations from 30% to 50% of the equipment purchasing cost; it also extends the credit out to 2017.

Certainly this is great news for those major automakers that will soon be debuting their new electric offerings, including Nissan  which has already had about 20,000 drivers pony up their reservation fees to be among the first to own the company’s all-electric LEAF. We are also thrilled to report that these vehicles are being built by U.S. workers in Tennessee.