Maryland Emerging As A National Leader In Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure

ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND - Governor O'Malley's vision of a Maryland fueled by a clean energy, innovation economy is bearing fruit as the Maryland based company, SemaConnect, unveiled the state's first privately developed, publicly accessible electric vehicle (EV) charging station today in Baltimore. The station joins a wave of 65 public EV charging stations being built by the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) and its partners by June 2011 to encourage adoption of this new technology and help Marylanders escape rising gasoline prices, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and enhance our energy security.


Maryland's success in becoming a national leader in EV readiness is made manifest by today's announcement that the first privately developed, publicly accessible electric vehicle charging stations in a residential community will open in Baltimore's Midtown community. The charging stations are part of a new, mixed-use development that is affiliated with the University of Baltimore and on-track to become the largest LEED-certified apartment community in the Baltimore area. This substantial private investment in both electric vehicles and energy efficiency is the result of years of Governor O'Malley's efforts at moving Maryland forward into the new innovation conomy by promoting clean, renewable energy and cost-saving investments in energy efficiency.

"Our goal in investing in electric vehicles has always been to ‘prime the pump'," said Malcolm Woolf, Director of the Maryland Energy Administration. "With today's announcement, it's clear that we've been successful."

Last June, MEA awarded $500,000 in grants to promote Maryland's Electric Vehicle Infrastructure, funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. These investments were designed to attract and support the emerging electric vehicle market by building 65 electric vehicle charging stations around the state, as well as to support Maryland's goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2020. These investments complimented the newly enacted Electric Vehicle Tax Credit and Electric Vehicle HOV bills which were passed by the General Assembly during the 2010 Legislative Session under the leadership of Governor O'Malley.

The Governor has continued to build on these efforts in 2011 by introducing to the General Assembly a package of three EV bills to prepare Maryland for the array of electric vehicles coming on the market in the next few years. The bills, currently moving through the legislature, would provide consumers a $400 tax credit towards installation of electric vehicle charging stations in their homes, require the Public Service Commission to conduct pilot studies of how best to encourage off-peak charging of electric vehicles, and to establish a statewide electric vehicle planning council.

Two public EV charging stations are already operational at the Community College of Baltimore County and by June 2011 construction will have been completed on 65 publicly accessible electric vehicle charging stations funded by grants from the Maryland Energy Administration. These charging stations, which are to be located throughout the Baltimore Metropolitan Area, will equip Maryland with the second largest installed charging station capacity in the nation and cement its position as a national leader in EV readiness.

"By making smart investments in electric vehicle technologies we have attracted private investment, created jobs, and reduced our dependence on costly foreign-oil," said Mr. Woolf. "Since electric vehicles cost about 75 cents per gallon to charge, EVs are good for our household budgets as well as America's energy security. Today's announcement in Baltimore underscores the wisdom of these investments and helps to cement Maryland's reputation as a leader in electric vehicle readiness."

For more information, visit the Maryland Energy Administration.