Electric vehicle (EV) charging stations are, once again, eligible technology projects for 2019 Clean Fuel Advanced Technology (CFAT) funding in North Carolina.
According to the NC Clean Energy Technology Center (NCCETC), the CFAT program is supported with federal Congestion Mitigation Air Quality funds provided by the N.C. Department of Transportation. The primary purpose of the CFAT project is to reduce transportation-related air pollution emissions. In 2019, up to $2.35 million in federal funding is being awarded.
Specific electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) projects are eligible in all 100 North Carolina counties. These EVSE projects must involve no digging, ground-breaking or pavement-cutting, notes the NCCETC.
“We are excited about this opportunity because demand for plug-in electric vehicles is rising and the need for additional charging infrastructure is growing,” comments Rick Sapienza, clean transportation program director at the NCCETC.
Although EVSE has been eligible under CFAT in prior years, recent interpretations of federal regulations made EVSE and other infrastructure projects infeasible, the center says. Clarification of those rules helped find this narrow set of projects, which can be funded without paperwork. These projects could include the replacement of stranded/non-working chargers; the installation of new chargers where the preparation work has been previously completed with proper local permitting and environmental compliance; or the installation of new chargers at facilities where no ground disturbance or cutting of concrete is required (such as inside a parking deck).
As in prior rounds, other clean transportation technologies are also eligible, as announced recently by the NCCETC.
The deadline to apply for the second round of funding is March 29. More information can be found here.
