Electric vehicle owners love the impressive fuel and maintenance savings, nimble performance and emission-free transportation their EVs provide. But life with an EV gets even better when it’s paired with a level 2 charger.
Clark Public Utilities wants to help its customers spend more time driving their EVs and less time waiting for them to charge. So we’ve partnered with Enel X to build an online marketplace where our customers can purchase a level 2 JuiceBox charger with a $500 rebate applied at the point of purchase.
As a customer-owned utility we’re always looking for new ways to make services and incentives more available and convenient for more of the people we serve. The online EV charger marketplace is the utility’s latest pilot project aimed at making our resources more accessible to more people.
“Clark Public Utilities is excited to offer the new online marketplace to our customers. We’re hopeful providing the $500 rebate upfront will open the door to EV ownership even more in Clark County,” said Matt Babbitts, Clark Public Utilities’ energy resources program manager.
To access the new marketplace or learn about our EV incentives, visit: ClarkPublicUtilities.com/evprogram.
At the utility’s EV webpage, you’ll see a redirect link that will take you to the Enel X JuiceBox Level 2 charger product page. There you’ll enter your ZIP code and choose the charging unit you want. Next, a $500 rebate will be instantly applied at checkout for Clark Public Utilities customers — no paperwork or additional contracts required. Each household is qualified to receive a rebate on up to two chargers. After the rebate and taxes are applied you can expect to pay between $100 and $150 per unit.
While the online marketplace is specific to the JuiceBox units, there are many other manufacturers and level 2 charging units that qualify for the same rebate. But to receive the rebate on those, customers will have to submit a rebate form. The aforementioned EV program webpage includes a list of qualified chargers as well as information about other EV rebates.
The best part of a level 2 charger is the speed. When you plug an EV into a regular 120-volt wall outlet, you can expect it to receive 3-5 miles of range per hour, requiring 24 hours or more to get a full charge from empty. With a level 2 charger you’ll get 18-24 miles of range per hour, requiring about six to eight hours for a full charge from empty. The exact charging time you’ll experience will depend on the amperage rating of your charger and your EV model.
Level 2 chargers come in two installation options. One is wired directly into the electric service panel, which should be done by a qualified professional. The other is plugging the charger directly into a 240-volt socket, similar to the socket your clothes dryer plugs into, and should also be installed by a professional. The performance difference between them is minimal, but the hardwire version is slightly more efficient — but maybe by a matter of minutes.
EVs are steadily gaining in popularity in Clark County. EV owners say they love the performance and impressive fuel and maintenance savings over an internal combustion engine.
“EV adoption in Clark County continues to grow at a robust rate,” Babbitts said. “On average, we add more than 100 new EVs each month, and as of mid-January there are over 5,000 registered EVs in the county.”
Energy Adviser is written by Clark Public Utilities. Send questions to ecod@clarkpud.com or to Energy Adviser, c/o Clark Public Utilities, P.O. Box 8900, Vancouver, WA 98668.
