YOUNG HARRIS, Georgia – As automakers retool their factories to build electric vehicles (EVs), many more EVs will be on the roadways in the next decade. Blue Ridge Mountain EMC (BRMEMC) is helping to make sure that Georgia is ready with charging infrastructure.
On August 2, BRMEMC announced that it has installed two fast chargers in downtown Blairsville through a partnership with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the City of Blairsville, Blairsville-Union Chamber of Commerce, and Seven States Power Corporation. This fast charger installation is part of the regional Fast Charge Network that will cover major travel corridors across TVA’s seven-state service area and will complement the broader efforts of the National Electric Highway Coalition, which seeks to enable long-distance EV travel by placing fast chargers along interstates and major highways throughout the United States.
“We moved quickly to participate in the Fast Charge Network because we want to make it easy for people to choose EVs so our community can enjoy the environmental and economic benefits of electric transportation,” said BRMEMC General Manager Allan Glidewell. “Grant funding from TVA makes it possible to add fast chargers in our community by providing 80% of the project cost, and our local partner, the Blairsville-Union County Chamber of Commerce, recognized this opportunity and provided the required grant match for the project.”
TVA has brought together local power companies, state and local government partners, and others to pave the way for over 200,000 EVs on Tennessee Valley roads by 2028. The benefits that these EVs bring to the Tennessee Valley region are significant:
- Attracting good jobs — $13.8 billion in EV and battery manufacturing have helped create over 10,000 EV-related jobs.
- Reducing carbon emissions from gasoline vehicles by almost 1 million metric tons per year or the equivalent of the carbon sequestered by 1 million acres of US forests in one year.
- Reinvesting $120 million in the local economy every year from electric refueling.
- Saving drivers up to $1,000 in fuel and maintenance costs every year.
“At TVA we’ve moved far beyond connecting communities with power lines,” said Monika Beckner, vice president of TVA EnergyRight. “Today, EVs use our clean, low-cost, reliable electricity to connect communities and commerce across our region. Taking a leadership role in EV charging infrastructure allows TVA to save drivers money and attract good jobs and tourism– all powered by electricity from TVA and your local power company.”
“Local power companies across the Tennessee Valley are seeing the value in innovative technology like EV fast chargers, and are increasingly turning to Seven States to design, develop, and deploy their EV projects,” said Betsey Kirk McCall, President and CEO of Seven States Power Corporation. “Seven States is proud of our EV projects because we have seen how EV infrastructure allows local residents, businesses, and visitors to benefit economically and environmentally from the national trend toward electrified transportation.”
“This charging site does more than simply charge cars — it connects Blairsville to the Fast Charge Network, which creates sustainable economic development opportunities for our region,” said Erik Brinke, BRMEMC Director of Administrative Services & External Relations. To learn more about the Fast Charge Network, calculate how much money an EV could save you, or locate EV charging stations on your travel route, check out https://energyright.com/ev/.