Grants available for electric vehicle fast-charging stations in Greater Minnesota

Electric vehicle (EV) drivers want to travel longer distances without worrying about where they can recharge. Over the next few years, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) will increase the state’s charging network by more than 2,500 miles using funds from the VW settlement to install 38 fast-charging stations in Greater Minnesota to help support the state’s growing EV market. Learn more below!

Minnesota has set ambitious goals for powering 20 percent of light-duty cars with electricity by 2030 and reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2050. Funding infrastructure projects like this will help us reach our goals while supporting Minnesota’s green economy and our growing EV market.

MPCA Commissioner Laura Bishop

Funding 2,500 miles of extended EV charging along seven corridors

Chargers will be placed 30 to 70 miles apart along seven proposed corridors, making it easier than ever for Minnesotans to use EVs to travel longer distances, including:

From Duluth to Grand Portage State Park on MN-61
Traveling east-west across northern Minnesota on MN-1 between Ely and Thief River Falls
From Granite Falls north to Karlstad on US Route 59
From Saint Cloud to Marshall, Pipestone and beyond on MN-23.

“Minnesota has set ambitious goals for powering 20 percent of light-duty cars with electricity by 2030 and reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2050,” said MPCA Commissioner Laura Bishop. “Funding infrastructure projects like this will help us reach our goals while supporting Minnesota’s green economy and our growing EV market.”

Between 2018 and 2019, the number of EV registrations in Minnesota nearly doubled, but gaps in the charging network may dissuade potential buyers who want to travel freely and not worry about where they can recharge. In the last two years, MPCA expanded Minnesota’s EV charging network along highway corridors by approximately 1,100 miles and funded 25 Level 2 charging stations, each with two charging ports, in local communities.

The new $2.6 million grant opportunity leverages funds from the national Volkswagen settlement to build out a network of fast charging stations so EVs can travel farther across the state. Applicants will be asked to place five to seven fast chargers along specific segments of roadway. A map of Minnesota’s existing and proposed charging corridors is included here and available on the MPCA website.

"When we’ve asked Minnesotans how we should spend funds from the Volkswagen settlement, building EV infrastructure is one of the most widely supported proposals,” added Rebecca Place, MPCA’s electric vehicle program administrator. “We are planning for the future by ensuring each charging station has a back-up station and enough electrical capacity for future expansion.”

The grants are intended to help reduce vehicle emissions in Minnesota by encouraging use of EVs rather than gas-powered cars. Passenger vehicles are one of the largest sources of climate-changing greenhouse gases and air pollution in Minnesota, accounting for nearly 70 percent of total GHG emissions from the transportation sector.

When we’ve asked Minnesotans how we should spend funds from the Volkswagen settlement, building EV infrastructure is one of the most widely supported proposals. We are planning for the future by ensuring each charging station has a back-up station and enough electrical capacity for future expansion.

Rebecca Place, Electric Vehicle Program Administrator at the MPCA

About the opportunity

Apply for a grant to install direct current fast chargers for electric vehicles in designated corridors along highways and interstates in Greater Minnesota. See the request for proposals (RFP) for full details on eligibility: who may apply, grant match amounts, and other information that will help applicants submit a proposal.

Application deadline: November 25, 2020
Total funding: Approximately $2.66 million
Maximum amount available for each 50kW fast charger: 80% of project costs, up to $70,000 (20% cash match required)
Learn more in a webinar September 15 at 11am, meeting number (access code): 146 196 4154 and password: UueSQ2kK6R4. You can also join by phone: 415-655-0003; Access code: 146 196 4154.