Cloudy early, becoming mostly sunny this afternoon. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High around 85F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph..

Partly cloudy skies. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 63F. Winds light and variable.

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear announced this week that Kentucky has received federal approval to develop a nearly $70 million electric vehicle charging network.

The state has already attracted more than $9 billion of investments from electric vehicle battery makers and automotive suppliers, including an electric battery plant in Hopkinsville.

Beshear said the state was already a leader in automotive production and the EV battery production capital of the United States, which is helping to create thousands of high-quality jobs for Kentuckians.

“We are further cementing the state’s status as a leader in the EV revolution by beginning to build the charging station infrastructure that will enable EV travel in every corner of our commonwealth,” he said.

Kentucky’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plan was developed by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet in cooperation with the Energy and Environment Cabinet, Public Service Commission, and Federal Highway Administration. The plan was submitted to the U.S. Joint Office of Energy and Transportation in late July and has now been approved, securing federal National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure formula program funds.

Federal funding for the first two years of the program will be provided to KYTC over the next few months. Matching funds, a total of $86.9 million will be available for EV charging infrastructure over the next five years.

Initial NEVI funding must be spent to build out direct current fast-charging stations that can fully charge a battery in 30 minutes or less at interchanges along interstates and parkways. Kentucky has already identified other priority highways on which charger access will be expanded in future phases to fill connectivity gaps.

KYTC Secretary Jim Gray said the goal is to have a statewide network of EV charges by 2025.

“Approval of our EV plan by the federal government now ensures Kentucky will receive $25 million in federal funds this year to begin to design and build that network, starting with our interstates and parkways,” he said.

Local communities and other agencies can apply for competitive grants to fund electric vehicle charging stations later in 2022 or early 2023 after the U.S. Department of Transportation has issued further guidance and a notice of funding opportunity. For additional information, visit governor.ky.gov/betterky.

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