The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), in cooperation with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, recently awarded $21 million in federal National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Program funds for electric vehicle (EV) fast-charging stations.
The agencies received 167 applications from 23 different applicants, and awarded funding to 10 applicants.
The grant winners will establish 30 new charging locations statewide. They will purchase, install, own, operate, maintain, and report on the program-funded EV charging infrastructure.
To fill gaps along the state’s designated Alternative Fuel Corridors, Tennessee needs 31 EV fast charging locations.
“Tennessee has been home to the automotive industry since the 1980s and those automakers are growing electric vehicle manufacturing,” Deputy Governor and TDOT Commissioner Butch Eley said. “With these federal dollars, Tennessee is investing in its future and paving the way to lead the nation as an EV epicenter. We want to ensure that drivers in any vehicle can safely get across the state from Mountain City to Memphis.”
The federal NEVI program allocated $88 million to Tennessee over five years. The program requires a match of at least 20 percent of the federal funds. EV charging stations must be located every 50 miles along Alternative Fuel Corridors.