Consumers Energy says they expect to power over 1,500 new public, fast-charging EV stations. In a statement, the company says the move highlights growth in the Michigan EV market. The company filed a plan with the Michigan Public Service Commission that features rebates for battery-powered EV Chargers.
The plan is part of an effort by state utilities to help boost Michigan’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
“In less than four years, Consumers Energy has seen the number of EVs in our territory more than triple,” said Brian Wheeler, a Consumers spokesperson. “We're going to be the service provider that's going to be providing electricity to these sites. It's going to be, it's going to be driven by businesses... or others who see a need in their communities to get public fast charging.”
The state is looking to continue building infrastructure in the hopes that it will incentivize EV usage. Michigan currently has 1,557 charging locations and 3,600 charging ports. “What we want to make sure is that we have EV chargers coming online in keeping with the demand for EV charging,” said Zachary Kolodin, Director of the Michigan Infrastructure Office. “You see the number of EV chargers in Michigan grow as EV ownership grows. If we continue to see EV ownership triple every four years, we will very rapidly see our charging infrastructure build out.”
Officials in the public and private sectors hope that increasing the number of EV chargers will help address range anxiety, which is often cited as a deterrent for potential EV buyers.
“People do get worried when they're on those long road trips. Knowing that there will be the public charging in place is going to give people confidence when they buy electric vehicles,” Wheeler said.
The company plans to offer rebates for public EV chargers powered by batteries. DTE Energy has a similar plan that would spend $145 million to fund around 19,300 chargers, with 1,040 being public. That plan goes through 2028 and also includes rebates for EV Chargers.
Kolodin says that investment in EV technology will help make electric vehicles more competitive. “So EV battery technology is improving rapidly,” he said. “America is now seeing batteries hit the market with significantly greater range than even just a few years ago.”
Editor's note: Consumers Energy and DTE Energy are among Michigan Public’s Corporate Sponsors.
