A new study calls on policymakers to find fresh sources of funding to build public electric vehicle charging stations. The most obvious source — sales of electricity — isn’t doing the trick.
The study by a California nonprofit looked at data on the use of public fast chargers in California over a five-year period. It found that electricity sales get the stations nowhere close to paying for themselves over a period of three years, the benchmark that many businesses use to consider an investment worthwhile.
The study was released Tuesday by Next 10, a nonprofit bankrolled by Noel Perry, the founder of venture capital firm Baccharis Capital and a philanthropist.
How to make charging stations pay their own way is becoming an increasingly important issue. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has built skepticism of EVs and charging stations into his campaign for the presidency and has threatened to pull funding for them. Because they rely on public support, local charging projects tend not to get built in areas run by Republicans.
