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Duke Energy to Invest $76 Million in Electric Car Chargers

Duke Energy Corp. plans to spend $76 million to add 2,500 charging stations for electric vehicles in North Carolina at a time when drivers can have a hard time finding a place to recharge as the industry expands.

Visitors look at the 'Piech Mark Zero' electric car during the press day at the '89th Geneva International Motor Show' in Geneva, Switzerland, Tuesday, March 05, 2019. The 'Geneva International Motor Show' takes place in Switzerland from March 7 until March 17, 2019. Automakers are rolling out new electric and hybrid models at the show as they get ready to meet tougher emissions requirements in Europe - while not forgetting the profitable and popular SUVs and SUV-like crossovers. (Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP)
Visitors look at the 'Piech Mark Zero' electric car during the press day at the '89th Geneva International Motor Show' in Geneva, Switzerland, Tuesday, March 05, 2019. The 'Geneva International Motor Show' takes place in Switzerland from March 7 until March 17, 2019. Automakers are rolling out new electric and hybrid models at the show as they get ready to meet tougher emissions requirements in Europe - while not forgetting the profitable and popular SUVs and SUV-like crossovers. (Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP)Read moreMARTIAL TREZZINI / AP
    by Jim Efstathiou Jr., Bloomberg
    Published 

(Bloomberg) — Duke Energy Corp. plans to spend $76 million to add 2,500 charging stations for electric vehicles in North Carolina at a time when drivers can have a hard time finding a place to recharge as the industry expands.

Key Insights

Along with charging stations, the money will fund adoption of electric school buses and public transportation, according to a company statement on Monday. North Carolina already has more than 10,000 plug-in hybrid and all-electric vehicles and about 600 public charging stations.The proposal to state regulators comes as automakers worldwide prepare to spend $255 billion through 2023 to develop battery-powered models. Even drivers in California, the largest U.S. electric vehicle market, have difficulties finding places to recharge. Drivers face similar frustrations in China and Europe. “This initiative will help accelerate public and private EV use while also reducing carbon emissions,” Lang Reynolds, Duke Energy’s director of electrification strategy, said in the company statement.

Market Reaction

Shares of Duke Energy fell by 0.82 percent to $89.26 at 9:34 a.m. in New York. The company’s stock has fallen by less than 1 percent in the past year.

Get More

Automakers are ramping up investments in charging states across Europe, the U.S. and in China.Drivers in the biggest EV markets still find it hard to find a place to plug in.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jim Efstathiou Jr. in New York at jefstathiou@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Lynn Doan at ldoan6@bloomberg.net, Reg Gale, Will Wade

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.