Fremont, Calif., Home to More EV Drivers Than Any Other ZIP Code in California, Adds Eight New Public Chargers to Meet Growing Demand

FREMONT, CA - May 12, 2016: Things just got easier for electric vehicle owners looking to recharge in Fremont. The Fremont Chamber of Commerce has partnered with the City of Fremont, Prologis, Inc., Gridscape Solutions and Delta Products Corporation to install two new dual-port Direct Current (DC) Fast Charging stations on the corner of Fremont Boulevard and Warren Avenue. In addition, six Level 2 dual-port charging stations have been installed within Bayside Business Park.

Fremont, Calif., is “ground zero” for the electric vehicle movement in the United States and home to celebrity-status electric car manufacturer Tesla Motors. With Tesla delivering more than 50,000 vehicles in 2015, the City is continuing to invest in an electric-powered future.

Fremont’s 94539 ZIP code has rebated more electric vehicles than any other ZIP code in California, and the city is home to approximately one third (32 percent) of all EV drivers within Alameda County. The EV charger installation project, funded by the California Energy Commission Grant under PON-13-606, is part of a larger effort to build a citywide infrastructure of public EV charging stations that can accommodate Fremont’s growing number of EV drivers.

“We’re interested and active in economic development within our city, and we’re committed to achieving this in a responsible and sustainable way. The addition of these charging stations is critical to our progress and success in this goal,” said Cindy Bonior, President and CEO of the Fremont Chamber of Commerce.

The new charging stations and the open payment processing kiosks have been operational since December 1, 2015. The Level 2 chargers are able to recharge a vehicle in two to three hours. The DC Quick Chargers, supplied by Delta Products Corporation, are able to fully recharge an electric car battery in as little as 15 to 30 minutes. The chargers are equipped with both SAE “Combo” and CHAdeMO ports, and can achieve industry-leading power conversion efficiency of 94 percent.

Vipul Gore, CEO and founder of Gridscape Solutions — the company that managed the project and provided the open payment processing kiosks and cloud-based managed OCPP network software service — predicts that by its third year of operation, this project is estimated to divert 133,000 kg of greenhouse gas emissions annually, replace approximately 957,000 conventional vehicle miles with EV miles, save 40,000 gallons of fuel annually and generate significant revenue from EV charging services for both Prologis and Gridscape.

With this latest installation, electric vehicle owners now have the option to charge up at a total of 26 different DC Fast Charging ports and 56 Level 2 charging ports within Fremont. The City’s other public charging stations are located at Pacific Commons Shopping Center, the Tesla factory, Ohlone College, Lucky Supermarket on Mowry, and Whole Foods Market, which houses the most heavily utilized stations out of NRG’s entire DC-charging network in California. Looking ahead, the City of Fremont has secured funding to install an additional 17 dual-port Level 2 public charging units throughout the Downtown area, and BART has been funded to install another 23 units at the Warm Springs BART station.

“Fremont is a major traffic corridor for the Bay Area with vehicles flowing in from I-880, I-680 and the Dumbarton Bridge. The EV charging stations provide Fremont’s 3,915 electric car owners, as well as commuters, with a quick and convenient method to charge their cars while working or exploring the City,” said Fremont Mayor Bill Harrison. “We’re excited to be able to offer these stations to our residents, employees and visitors.”

“The City of Fremont is doing a tremendous job of creating the public infrastructure necessary to foster a high adoption rate of electric vehicles,” said M.S. Huang, President of Delta Products Corporation. “We’re delighted to contribute our cutting-edge EV quick charging technology to the City’s initiatives, as they perfectly align with our mission to offer a complete range of proven EV charging solutions for a cleaner environment.”

Delta and Gridscape are two Fremont-based companies with proven experience and expertise in building and installing EV infrastructure. Their contributions to this project illustrate the breadth of Fremont’s clean tech industry and the strength of its local supply chain.

To celebrate Fremont’s progress towards a more sustainable future, a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new charging stations will take place today, Thursday, May 12, at Bayside Business Park at 10 a.m.

For additional information on electric vehicles in Fremont, please visit http://www.fremont.gov/2057/Electric-Vehicles.