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Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director John J. Kim has announced plans to spend more than $25 million on new EV charging infrastructure under the Driving a Cleaner Illinois program.

That $25.1 million of Illinois EPA money ($25,152,259.44, to be exact) is being awarded to 20 applicants, and will eventually fund 643 new Direct Current Fast Charging (DCFC) ports at 141 locations throughout the state. These awards come in addition to $12.6 million the Illinois EPA awarded in Volkswagen Settlement funding (read: Dieselgate penalties) for more than 300 new EV fast charging ports in 2023.

“Through these grants, Illinois will increase the number of fast charging ports by over 100 percent, resulting in nearly 1,000 more fast charging ports available for Illinois’ EV motorists and visitors,” said Director Kim. “This is significant progress in building out EV charging infrastructure throughout Illinois, with more opportunities on the way.”

The money is geared towards putting DCFC charging stations at publicly accessible locations like malls, grocery stores, gas stations, and hotels (etc.). Additional “points” (translation: funds) were awarded to projects in Equity Investment Eligible Communities.

“In Illinois, we’re strategically turning our vision for a clean energy future into a reality,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Thanks to recent grant awards, my administration will double the number of publicly available fast charging ports — putting us one step closer to our goal of reaching 100% clean energy by 2050.”

The complete list of award winners is listed, below.

Grantee Award Amount Location(s) of EV Chargers Location Type
3216N Inc $320,000.00 Elk Grove Village
Stone Park
Gas Stations
Adams Electric Cooperative $277,814.00 Quincy (2) Community College
Hotel
Amoco Food Shop Number 1 Inc $320,000.00 Chicago (2) Gas Stations
BP Products North America Inc $8,320,000.00 Addison
Aurora (2)
Bellwood
Bloomington
Bolingbrook
Chicago (2)
Crystal Lake
Des Plaines (2)
Effingham (2)
Elk Grove Village
Glen Ellyn
Hampshire
Huntley
Joliet (2)
Kankakee
Lake in the Hills
Lombard
McHenry
Morris
Mt. Vernon
Naperville (2)
Romeoville
Round Lake Beach
Round Lake Park
Summit
Third Lake
Troy
Volo
West Chicago
Woodridge
Zion
Gas Stations
Egyptian Electric Cooperative Association $320,000.00 Carbondale
Carterville
University
Hotel
Gjovik Ford $400,000.00 Plano
Sandwich
Car Dealerships
GPM Investments LLC $319,751.44 Edgewood
St. Elmo
Gas Stations
ITSM Software Consultants Inc $1,810,000.00 Algonquin (2)
Arlington Heights (2)
Bridgeview
Buffalo Grove
Chicago
Matteson
North Chicago
Roselle
West Chicago (2)
Shopping/Retail
Lanman Oil Company $480,000.00 Charleston
Mattoon
Tuscola
Gas Stations
OBE Power Networks 1 LLC $320,000.00 Ottawa (2) Parks/Recreation
OSF Healthcare System $320,000.00 Peoria (2) Healthcare
Pilot Travel Centers LLC $1,440,000.00 Decatur
Effingham
Gilman
Marion
Marshall
Oakwood
Rochelle
Vandalia
Woodhull
Gas Stations
PowerPort EVC LLC $320,000.00 Ashkum
Bourbonnais
Shopping/Recreation
Red E Charging LLC $2,079,402.00 Arcola
Atlanta
Bolingbrook
Brimfield
Chicago
Fulton
Loves Park
Marion
Peotone
Richton Park
Shorewood
Villa Park
Wilmette
Gas Stations
Rivian Automotive LLC $920,000.00 Normal
Oak Brook
Springfield
Shopping/Retail
Road Ranger LLC $1,600,000.00 Bourbonnais
Dixon
Grayville
Marion
Marshall
McLean
Minonk
Princeton
Rochelle
Springfield
Gas Stations
Shiner Management Group Inc $320,000.00 Gurnee
Mundelein
Shopping/Retail
Sustainable Energies Corporation $1,760,000.00 Country Club Hills
East Peoria
Glendale
Grayslake
Gurnee
McHenry
Melrose Park
Moline
Round Lake Beach
Waukegan (2)
Restaurants
Universal EV LLC $2,945,292.00 East Peoria (2)
Princeton (2)
Casey
Sandoval
Salem
Granite City
Peoria
Decatur
Ottawa (5)
Gilman
Marion
Lincoln
Hoffman Estates
Chillicothe
Elk Grove Village
Hotels
Shopping/Retail
Victory Lane Ford Inc $560,000.00 Carlinville
Litchfield
Car Dealerships
TOTAL $25,152,259.44
Via Illinois EPA.

Electrek’s Take

Mercedes charging hub
Mercedes-Benz Chargepoint charging hub; via Mercedes-Benz.

More EV charging infrastructure is undoubtedly a good thing, and these funds are going to help encourage business and public sector entities in the state to keep doing the right thing here and invest in the future of transportation.

It’s also worth noting that these Illinois EPA funds can “stack” with similar Make-Ready EV charging infrastructure rebate programs from ComEd, a utility company that provides service in northern Illinois. The first phase of the ComEd rebate program has a $77 million budget over two years.

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Loren McDonald stops by Quick Charge to discuss EV charging, Paren, and more

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Loren McDonald stops by Quick Charge to discuss EV charging, Paren, and more

Leading electric vehicle analyst, author, and industry thought leaders Loren McDonald and Bill Ferro stop by Quick Charge to discuss EV Adoption’s acquisition by Paren, the “crisis” of EV charging reliability, and the real state of the EV market.

Depending on who you listen, EVs are either driving brands to record growth and are about cross that critical 10% of the overall market nationwide, or the future is bleak, the market is down, and EVs just aren’t selling. What’s really going on? Loren and Bill (probably) have some answers.

Today’s episode is sponsored by BLUETTI, a leading provider of portable power stations, solar generators, and energy storage systems. For a limited time, save up to 52% during BLUETTI’s exclusive Black Friday sale, now through November 28, and be sure to use promo code BLUETTI5OFF for 5% off all power stations site wide. Click here to learn more.

Prefer listening to your podcasts? Audio-only versions of Quick Charge are now available on Apple PodcastsSpotifyTuneIn, and our RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded, usually, Monday through Thursday (and sometimes Sunday). We’ll be posting bonus audio content from time to time as well, so be sure to follow and subscribe so you don’t miss a minute of Electrek’s high-voltage daily news!

Got news? Let us know!
Drop us a line at tips@electrek.co. You can also rate us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!

Read more: All my favorite EVs, racecars, and robots from Electrify Expo Austin.

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Chevy EV owners in Texas now get free overnight home charging with Reliant

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Chevy EV owners in Texas now get free overnight home charging with Reliant

Chevy EV owners in Texas who have Reliant as their electric utility can now charge for free at night with renewable energy.

Over 150 Chevrolet dealerships across Texas are now offering the Reliant Free Charge Nights plan to new EV buyers. With Free Charge Nights, customers can offset their charging costs by receiving credits for electricity used between 11 pm and 6 am. The plan is powered entirely by renewable energy, thanks to the purchase of renewable energy certificates (RECs).

Rasesh Patel, president of NRG Consumer, says the plan is about making power personal: “We’re excited to help Chevrolet EV drivers offset the cost of charging their vehicle all while having access to a renewable electricity plan.”

This collaboration aims to make EV adoption more appealing by making charging cheaper and greener. GM Energy’s chief revenue officer, Aseem Kapur, emphasized that partnerships like this help build the ecosystem needed to support an all-electric future: “The Reliant Free Charge Nights plan is a great example of how an automaker and an energy company can work together to make EV adoption an easy decision.”

Existing Reliant customers can also sign up for the Free Charge Nights plan. To get started, Chevrolet EV owners need to designate their vehicle on the GM Energy Smart Charging Portal before enrolling in the plan.

Reliant Energy, a subsidiary of NRG Energy, serves over 1.5 million customers in Texas, making it one of the largest electricity providers in the state.

Read more: Texas to get 1 GW AI-powered virtual power plant, enough to power 200,000 homes


If you live in an area that has frequent natural disaster events, and are interested in making your home more resilient to power outages, consider going solar and adding a battery storage system. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. They have hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.

Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –trusted affiliate link*

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Texas to get 1 GW AI-powered virtual power plant, enough to power 200,000 homes

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Texas to get 1 GW AI-powered virtual power plant, enough to power 200,000 homes

Texas is about to get a major power boost – a new AI-powered virtual power plant (VPP) delivering capacity equivalent to 200,000 homes during peak demand.

NRG Energy is teaming up with Renew Home to bring nearly 1 gigawatt (GW) of capacity to the Texas grid by 2035, aiming to make it more resilient while helping residents save on energy costs.

The new VPP will rely on hundreds of thousands of smart thermostats and other connected home devices, making use of AI technology provided by Google Cloud. These devices, like Vivint and Nest smart thermostats, will be offered to eligible customers at no cost. By automating HVAC adjustments, they help shift energy use to when electricity is cheaper, cleaner, and less strained.

NRG and Renew Home have big plans for the VPP. Starting in spring 2025, the companies plan to roll out the program across Texas, installing these smart thermostats in homes served by NRG’s retail electricity providers. Eventually, they plan to add home battery storage and EVs to expand the power plant’s capabilities.

Texas has faced record-breaking energy demands, with peak usage hitting 85 GW in 2023. As the state’s population grows and extreme weather becomes more frequent, VPPs like this one could play a key role in stabilizing the grid. VPPs aggregate a lot of small-scale energy resources, from smart thermostats to home batteries, and use them to help balance supply and demand during times of high stress on the grid.

This nearly 1 GW VPP will be one of the largest of its kind in Texas. NRG’s president of consumer operations, Rasesh Patel, calls it a “pivotal step” for improving customer experience while making Texas’ energy infrastructure more sustainable and resilient.

In addition to Renew Home, NRG is working with Google Cloud to maximize the power plant’s effectiveness. Google Cloud’s AI and analytics tools will help predict weather conditions, forecast renewable generation, and optimize energy usage, all of which will help make energy management smoother for both customers and the grid.

Ben Brown, CEO of Renew Home, said:

NRG’s commitment to creating a more resilient and sustainable energy future while also making electricity bills more affordable makes them an ideal partner for co-developing this unique VPP program.

This initiative raises the bar for future-proofing our electricity infrastructure and delivering cost savings to customers.

Read: Chinese solar giant Trina sells its Texas factory a week after it opens


To limit power outages and make your home more resilient, consider going solar with a battery storage system. In order to find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. They have hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and you share your phone number with them.

Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –trusted affiliate link*

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