A new rebate program aims to make owning a used electric vehicle easier on the pocketbook but the clock is ticking to take advantage of the program.
Pacific Gas & Electric has nearly $80 million to handout through its “Pre-Owned Electric Vehicle Rebate Program,” that is “providing qualified residential customers up to $4,000, when purchasing or leasing a pre-owned EV. The program aims to distribute more than $78 million to promote the adoption of EVs and make EV ownership more affordable for all customers.”
PG&E electricity customers may qualify for $1,000 to $4,000 in rebates under the program, based on household incomes. The program is for purchased or leased EVs and plug-in hybrids. To be eligible, interested customers must submit applications within 180 days of purchasing the vehicle.
Aaron August, PG&E’s vice president of Utility Partnerships and Innovation, said, “This new rebate program addresses the continued growth of the pre-owned EV market with a focus on making EVs more affordable for all customers throughout our service area. Affordability can be a barrier to EV adoption, and this program will help offset costs for our customers who want to explore pre-owned EV ownership.”
The program is funded by the California Air Resources Board’s “Low Carbon Fuel Standard,” which is “an initiative designed to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. PG&E earns LCFS credits for supplying low-carbon fuel in the form of electricity, and re-distributes funds generated from the sale of those credits through customer programs. The Pre-Owned EV Rebate Program has no impact on customer rates.”
“The launch of the Pre-Owned EV Rebate Program,” August said, “directly aligns with our core focus of proactively preparing the grid for electric transportation, increasing access to EV infrastructure, and supporting EV adoption through rates, rebates, tools and education.”
The rebates are but one of several programs PG&E has regarding electric vehicles. Programs currently available are:
• PG&E’s EV Fleet Program — helps customers with medium and heavy-duty vehicles in their fleets to install cost-effective charging infrastructure to save money, reduce tailpipe emissions and simplify maintenance;
• EV Fast Charge Program — PG&E is funding and installing infrastructure at qualifying customer sites to support the expansion of publicly available fast-charging stations for light-duty vehicles; and,
• EV Charge Schools Program — Installing level 2 charging stations at school facilities and educational institutions for staff, parents and students to charge their EVs. “PG&E helps fund the costs of purchasing and installing the EV charging equipment and networking fees at participating schools, as well as ongoing maintenance and operations; with at least 40% of the new chargers located in disadvantaged communities.
The company said nearly 500,000 EVs — one in seven nationwide — have been sold to people in PG&E’s service areas.
The comapny outlined its strategy for accommodating the growing number of EVs in its “Climate Strategy Report” released in 2022.
The company said it is preparing the power grid “to quickly and safely power at least 3 million EVs — or about 12,000 gigawatts of EV-related electric load. PG&E “is also working to enable 2 million of those EVs to participate in vehicle-grid integration applications, allowing EVs to be a cornerstone of both electric reliability and climate resilience for PG&E customers broadly.”
