Wednesday, July 11, 2012

AeroVironment Deploys EV Chargers In Hawaii

Monrovia, California-based AeroVironment, which develops both electric vehicle charging stations as well as unmanned aerial vehicles, has deployed its EV chargers in Hawaii, as part of a deployment with Aloha Petroleum. According to Aloha Petroleum--which is the largest supplier of gasoline in Hawaii--AeroVironment's fast chargers have been installed at three gas stations on the island of Oahu. The DC fast chargers work with such vehicles as the Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi i-MiEV, charging them in less than 30 minutes. Aloha Petroleum said that charging at the DC stations will be free for a limited time.

The install is part of the Hawaii EV Ready Grant Program, which is installing 200 new EV charging stations at 80 locations statewide. AeroVironment apparently won a $820,000 contract in March of 2011 to deploy its charging stations across the islands. The state's charging stations are very visible across Oahu at shopping malls and a number of hotels; a recent visit to the city saw a surprising number of Nissan Leaf electric vehicles on the streets, however, only a limited number of electric vehicles appear to be available to tourists in the state, mostly via a small fleet owned by Enterprise.

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