The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has unanimously approved Southern California Edison’s (SCE) Charge Ready 2 program, a $437-million EV infrastructure program that will support the deployment of up to 38,000 new charging stations across Southern California over the next four years.

SCE says Charge Ready 2, which builds on the $22-million Charge Ready program that was approved in 2014, is the largest single utility EVSE project in the country.

One major goal of Charge Ready 2 is to increase access to EV charging in important but underserved locations such as apartment complexes and workplaces.

Highlights of the program include:

• Make-ready infrastructure for charging stations at workplaces and multi-unit dwellings; turnkey infrastructure solutions for charging stations at multi-unit dwellings; and rebates to ensure newly constructed buildings are EV-ready
• Commitments to serve disadvantaged communities, including a 50 percent target for make-ready infrastructure; a 100 percent target for turnkey solutions; and a 30 percent target for new construction rebates
• $14.5 million for education and outreach efforts

According to the Sierra Club, regulators around the US have approved some $2.1 billion in utility-driven EV infrastructure programs to date. These investments include more than $1 billion in California, as well as a $701-million program approved in July by New York regulators that will be split among the state’s electric utilities.

Source: Sierra Club