North America's EV charging infrastructure to get a boost

North America's EV charging infrastructure may soon see significant improvements, thanks to a recent agreement between Eaton Corporation and Coulomb Technologies.

Under the deal, Eaton's Level II and DC quick charging Pow-R-Station will give station owners the option to become part of Coulomb's ChargePoint Network - the world's largest network of independently owned charging stations.

"Eaton is a leader in the creation of the public EV charging station network in North America, which will set the stage for widespread regional adoption of EVs and serve as a global model of sustainable transportation," said Tom Schafer, vice president and general manager of Eaton's Commercial Distribution Products Division. "This collaboration with ChargePoint Network is a critical step to linking vehicles into the utility grid, offering multiple benefits to EV and charging station owners and consumers, including lower fuel costs, a higher return on investment and reduction of greenhouse gases."

Eaton's Pow-R-Stations are said to be able to charge an EV in as little as three hours. Under this deal, Eaton's stations will be able to take advantage of the ChargePoint network of service plans, management infrastructure, automated billing, 24/7 driver support and driver services. Eaton stations that are ChargePoint-enabled will be included on ChargePoint mobile phone apps, making them easy to locate for drivers nearby, and drivers can even start and stop charging via a smartphone. Drivers are also able to reserve time slots at particular charging stations.

Details on pricing and availability of Eaton's ChargePoint-enabled services will be released early in 2012.

Photo: Coulomb Technologies

This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com