Entergy Mississippi launches first company-owned electric vehicle charging station
As a pilot project to determine how electric vehicle growth will impact the region’s power grid, Entergy Mississippi this week deployed its first company-owned direct current fast charging station in Mississippi.
This debut will serve residents in Ridgeland, Miss., and EV drivers passing through the area on I-55 and I-20. Entergy Mississippi will tap the station to collect details on the impact users have on the grid, including frequency of use, time of day, and location. Given that all signs point to electric vehicle use increasing in the years ahead – perhaps an estimated 26 million in the United States by 2030 – analysis of this kind could help the company to plan for the future.
“The complexities of the power grid require us to plan years ahead of when we’ll need infrastructure in place to serve our customers,” Haley Fisackerly, president and CEO of Entergy Mississippi, said. “By proactively installing this fast charging EV station pilot project, we’ll be able to learn in real-time the effects electric vehicle use has on our systems and implement technologies to help manage the demands we expect in the future.”
This facility will utilize two direct current fast chargers providing up to 120 kW for a variety of electric vehicle models. Users will be charged $0.30 per kWh, meaning that, on average, an EV could be fully charged within 30-45 minutes, at approximately $20-30 per hour.
”Entergy Mississippi’s DC fast charging station pilot program will help us ultimately bridge the ‘charging gap’ on Mississippi roadways in (all areas) rural and urban,” Willie Simmons, central district commissioner at the Mississippi Department of Transportation, said. “Our hope is that one day EV drivers will no longer have to bypass our state because of a lack of charging infrastructure which hurts tourism and economic activity. This public and private collaboration investment will yield great returns for the public sector.”
Entergy Mississippi, a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation, provides electricity to approximately 461,000 customers in 45 counties.
