Electrify America expands NACS pilot to major charging hubs

Electrify America is expanding its pilot deployment of North American Charging Standard (NACS) connectors, adding the charging interface to a number of high-traffic sites in California and the eastern United States. The operator will convert selected CCS connectors at ten sites and establish four dedicated NACS locations.

Electrify america nacs — Image: Electrify America

The charging network, which already operates NACS pilot stations in Connecticut and Florida, announced that it will begin installing NACS connectors at five large-format charging hubs in California later this month. Rather than replacing existing charging infrastructure entirely, the company will convert selected CCS connectors to NACS while continuing to support vehicles equipped with the Combined Charging System.

The first phase of the expansion will cover the Harrison Street Flagship site in San Francisco, Westfield Valley Fair in Santa Clara, Fashion Valley Mall South in San Diego, the Santa Monica Station and the Santa Barbara Flagship site. Electrify America stated that ‘we will convert some CCS connectors to NACS at each of these sites to support a broader range of EV drivers.’

The company added that some chargers at the affected locations will be temporarily unavailable while the conversion work is carried out. Charging station status updates will be reflected on Electrify America’s network updates platform.

Later this summer, Electrify America plans to go a step further by converting four California stations to operate exclusively with NACS connectors. The affected sites are located in La Mirada, Arcadia, Santa Ana and Diamond Bar.

The move marks the first deployment of all-NACS charging locations within Electrify America’s network. The operator has not disclosed the criteria used to select the sites, but the dedicated locations will allow it to assess demand and utilisation patterns as more vehicle manufacturers adopt NACS as their native charging standard.

A further expansion is planned for the East Coast. Electrify America will convert selected CCS connectors to NACS at five additional locations: Wakefern ShopRite 140 in Wyckoff, New Jersey; Urban Edge Tonnelle Commons in North Bergen, New Jersey; Wakefern ShopRite 111 in Nutley, New Jersey; Wakefern ShopRite 407 in Yardley, Pennsylvania; and Wawa Store 0219 in Bristol, Pennsylvania.

Once the installations are complete, drivers will be able to locate NACS-equipped chargers through the Electrify America app and website, as well as via integrated platforms such as Google Maps and participating vehicle manufacturer applications. The company noted that chargers fitted with NACS connectors will carry ‘a clearly-marked label at the top’ to ensure they can be identified easily from a distance.

The rollout reflects the rapid adoption of NACS across the US EV industry. Originally developed by Tesla, the charging standard has been adopted by a growing number of vehicle manufacturers, many of which are now introducing models with native NACS ports or offering adapters for existing vehicles.

Source: Information via e-mail, electrifyamerica.com (NACS locations)