Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director John J. Kim has announced plans to spend more than $25 million on new EV charging infrastructure under the Driving a Cleaner Illinois program.
That $25.1 million of Illinois EPA money ($25,152,259.44, to be exact) is being awarded to 20 applicants, and will eventually fund 643 new Direct Current Fast Charging (DCFC) ports at 141 locations throughout the state. These awards come in addition to $12.6 million the Illinois EPA awarded in Volkswagen Settlement funding (read: Dieselgate penalties) for more than 300 new EV fast charging ports in 2023.
“Through these grants, Illinois will increase the number of fast charging ports by over 100 percent, resulting in nearly 1,000 more fast charging ports available for Illinois’ EV motorists and visitors,” said Director Kim. “This is significant progress in building out EV charging infrastructure throughout Illinois, with more opportunities on the way.”
Advertisement
The money is geared towards putting DCFC charging stations at publicly accessible locations like malls, grocery stores, gas stations, and hotels (etc.). Additional “points” (translation: funds) were awarded to projects in Equity Investment Eligible Communities.
“In Illinois, we’re strategically turning our vision for a clean energy future into a reality,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Thanks to recent grant awards, my administration will double the number of publicly available fast charging ports — putting us one step closer to our goal of reaching 100% clean energy by 2050.”
The complete list of award winners is listed, below.
Grantee
Award Amount
Location(s) of EV Chargers
Location Type
3216N Inc
$320,000.00
Elk Grove Village Stone Park
Gas Stations
Adams Electric Cooperative
$277,814.00
Quincy (2)
Community College Hotel
Amoco Food Shop Number 1 Inc
$320,000.00
Chicago (2)
Gas Stations
BP Products North America Inc
$8,320,000.00
Addison Aurora (2) Bellwood Bloomington Bolingbrook Chicago (2) Crystal Lake Des Plaines (2) Effingham (2) Elk Grove Village Glen Ellyn Hampshire Huntley Joliet (2) Kankakee Lake in the Hills Lombard McHenry Morris Mt. Vernon Naperville (2) Romeoville Round Lake Beach Round Lake Park Summit Third Lake Troy Volo West Chicago Woodridge Zion
Gas Stations
Egyptian Electric Cooperative Association
$320,000.00
Carbondale Carterville
University Hotel
Gjovik Ford
$400,000.00
Plano Sandwich
Car Dealerships
GPM Investments LLC
$319,751.44
Edgewood St. Elmo
Gas Stations
ITSM Software Consultants Inc
$1,810,000.00
Algonquin (2) Arlington Heights (2) Bridgeview Buffalo Grove Chicago Matteson North Chicago Roselle West Chicago (2)
Shopping/Retail
Lanman Oil Company
$480,000.00
Charleston Mattoon Tuscola
Gas Stations
OBE Power Networks 1 LLC
$320,000.00
Ottawa (2)
Parks/Recreation
OSF Healthcare System
$320,000.00
Peoria (2)
Healthcare
Pilot Travel Centers LLC
$1,440,000.00
Decatur Effingham Gilman Marion Marshall Oakwood Rochelle Vandalia Woodhull
Gas Stations
PowerPort EVC LLC
$320,000.00
Ashkum Bourbonnais
Shopping/Recreation
Red E Charging LLC
$2,079,402.00
Arcola Atlanta Bolingbrook Brimfield Chicago Fulton Loves Park Marion Peotone Richton Park Shorewood Villa Park Wilmette
Gas Stations
Rivian Automotive LLC
$920,000.00
Normal Oak Brook Springfield
Shopping/Retail
Road Ranger LLC
$1,600,000.00
Bourbonnais Dixon Grayville Marion Marshall McLean Minonk Princeton Rochelle Springfield
Gas Stations
Shiner Management Group Inc
$320,000.00
Gurnee Mundelein
Shopping/Retail
Sustainable Energies Corporation
$1,760,000.00
Country Club Hills East Peoria Glendale Grayslake Gurnee McHenry Melrose Park Moline Round Lake Beach Waukegan (2)
Restaurants
Universal EV LLC
$2,945,292.00
East Peoria (2) Princeton (2) Casey Sandoval Salem Granite City Peoria Decatur Ottawa (5) Gilman Marion Lincoln Hoffman Estates Chillicothe Elk Grove Village
Hotels Shopping/Retail
Victory Lane Ford Inc
$560,000.00
Carlinville Litchfield
Car Dealerships
TOTAL
$25,152,259.44
Via Illinois EPA.
Electrek’s Take
Mercedes-Benz Chargepoint charging hub; via Mercedes-Benz.
More EV charging infrastructure is undoubtedly a good thing, and these funds are going to help encourage business and public sector entities in the state to keep doing the right thing here and invest in the future of transportation.
It’s also worth noting that these Illinois EPA funds can “stack” with similar Make-Ready EV charging infrastructure rebate programs from ComEd, a utility company that provides service in northern Illinois. The first phase of the ComEd rebate program has a $77 million budget over two years.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
The Illinois Secretary of State’s Office is warning residents of a “new surge” in scam texts claiming to be from the DMV and demanding money.
According to a press release from Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, residents are receiving text messages falsely claiming to either be from his office or a DMV, threatening suspension of license and vehicle registration if “fines” are not paid.
The messages often include links that can be used to steal residents’ information, and Giannoulias’ office is reminding residents to use vigilance and caution when receiving such messages.
“These text messages look legitimate and are designed to frighten people into acting quickly before they have time to think,” Giannoulias said. “Our office will never send a text message demanding payment or threatening to suspend someone’s license. If you receive a message like this, remember it’s a scam – plain and simple. Do not click the link and please report the message to scamalert@ilsos.gov.”
Advertisement
According to his office, the messages often reference fake regulations or deadlines, and cite an upcoming enforcement date to add an air of urgency to the texts.
“These schemes are designed to create panic and trick individuals into surrendering money or personal information,” the Secretary of State’s Office said.
If a motorist receives a text, they are urged:
-NEVER to click a link
-Do not reply
Advertisement
-Do not provide personal information
-Forward the message to the SOS’ scam alert email.
The only legitimate text messages the Secretary of State’s Office sends are to remind motorists of upcoming appointments at DMV facilities.
The No. 3 seed Illinois Fighting Illini (25-8) take on the No. 11 seed VCU Rams (28-7) with a Sweet 16 spot on the line on Saturday at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
How to watch VCU Rams vs. Illinois Fighting Illini
Stats to know
Illinois has a +501 scoring differential, topping opponents by 15.2 points per game. It is putting up 85.0 points per game to rank 17th in college basketball and is allowing 69.8 per outing to rank 67th in college basketball.
Illinois knocks down 11.0 three-pointers per game (eighth-most in college basketball), 2.6 more than its opponents (8.4). It is shooting 34.9% from deep (126th in college basketball) while allowing opponents to shoot 31.3%.
VCU has a +347 scoring differential, topping opponents by 9.9 points per game. It is putting up 81.6 points per game, 55th in college basketball, and is giving up 71.7 per outing to rank 116th in college basketball.
VCU knocks down 9.4 three-pointers per game (60th in college basketball) at a 36.9% rate (31st in college basketball), compared to the 6.8 per game its opponents make, at a 32.9% rate.
This watch guide was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.
Betting/odds, ticketing and streaming links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.
Photo: Patrick Smith, Andy Lyons, Steph Chambers, Jamie Squire / Getty Images
