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Grant PUD to add electric vehicle charging stations

CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 6 years, 3 months AGO
by CHERYL SCHWEIZER
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | December 25, 2019 11:36 PM

Will be available to public

MOSES LAKE — Electric vehicle drivers will have two new spots to charge up the car in Moses Lake, for a fee, early next year. Two new charging stations will be installed at the Grant County PUD office, 312 West Third Ave. Installation of the “Level 3” charging stations will be completed by early 2020.

The Level 3 charger can charge an electric car in as little as 30 minutes, according to information from the PUD. The two Level 3 stations will be open to the public and will be metered, requiring a fee from users.

That fee is still being determined. The PUD will receive five percent of the net revenues from the stations.

The charging stations will be in the parking lot on the office’s southwest side. The stations will be installed by Richland-based Energy Northwest.

Energy Northwest recently received a grant from the Washington Department of Transportation to install electric vehicle chargers throughout eastern Washington, including along Interstate 90. It’s part of the organization’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Transportation Alliance, which is designed to make it easier for electric vehicle drivers to get around the state, and around the country.

The PUD will be installing two “Level 2” charging stations at the Moses Lake office that will be used to charge two PUD-owned electric vehicles scheduled to go into service in early 2020. A Level 2 charging station takes two to four hours to charge a vehicle.

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at [email protected].

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