Observations about the $95M-Plan for Critical Clean Transportation Investments in California
The upcoming plan calls for:
- $32.7 million for light-duty EV charging infrastructure
- $30 million for medium- and heavy-duty ZEVs and infrastructure
- $20 million for hydrogen refueling infrastructure
- $2.5 million for workforce development
The investment plan also allocates $10 million for production of zero- and near-zero-carbon fuels.
It is likely we will see some alternative financing being deployed by the CEC. Loan Loss Reserve/Loan Guarantees—These financing types are being proposed as a way to potentially increase opportunities to leverage private financing and transition alternative fuel and vehicle investments from public to private sources. The CEC believes that these funding mechanisms become more appropriate as technologies and markets mature. We are aware that this is being tested with a pilot program for electric vehicle charging equipment.
We are also going to see more benefit-cost measurements in the scoring incorporated into the development of new CEC solicitations. Grant Management Associates is well versed in the calculations used to determine this ratio. It will be given greater scoring weight in future solicitations; especially those that focus on mature technology and commercial projects. In recent solicitations, we have seen this preference also been incorporated as part of the general scoring criteria and as a potential tiebreaker in the event of proposals receiving equal scores.
Future Investment
Energy Commission staff, estimates that the sum of existing charging ports and charging ports funding across all state funding programs will result in 162,000 Level 2 charging ports and 6,400 DC fast charging ports by 2025, leaving gaps of approximately 78,000 Level 2 charging ports and 3,600 DC fast charging ports by 2025. Staff recommends an aggressive near-term funding solution to help close this gap. Even if the gap is ultimately closed by the 2025 time frame, it is important to have funding available to ensure the public adoption of EVs is not stymied by the lack of charging infrastructure in the intervening years. To help achieve this, Energy Commission staff proposes a $32.7 million allocation for light-duty electric vehicle charging infrastructure for FY 2019-2020.
Energy Commission staff proposes a $30 million allocation dedicated to medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles and infrastructure. Staff intends to balance the need to continue demonstration projects while taking into account similar funding available from other sources and an increasing need for charging and refueling infrastructure. Staff expects that funding from this category will also be necessary to address Energy Commission-specific actions outlined in the California Sustainable Freight Action Plan and help achieve GHG and air pollution reduction goals through investments in public transit. These projects may include propulsion and nonpropulsion aspects, such as alternative-fueled vehicles, infrastructure, and other advanced freight and fleet technologies.
These are just but a few of the observations that Grant Management Associates has regarding this Funding Plan. The focus on Disadvantaged communities is not likely to wain in these upcoming funding rounds. Please contact us with any questions.