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EGEB: ‘Charge EV’ co-op to install more charging stations in Midwest

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

  • “Charge EV,” an EV charging network in the Midwest, is working to install more charging stations.
  • Check out six innovative companies from the 2021 Global Cleantech 100 that won special awards.
  • UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Midwest EV charging station increase

Midwest EV charging stations will increase in numbers, if 30 electric vehicle cooperatives have anything to say about it. They’ve created “Charge EV,” an EV charging network for states such as Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. Charge EV is looking for vendors selling affordable chargers to make them more widely available.

Not-for-profit electric utility Central Wisconsin Electric Cooperative (CWEC) president and CEO Mike Wade said:

Electric vehicles have come a long way and they have more range than they’ve ever had before.

We hope to be able to offer chargers to our members and the general public so that there are more charging stations in the Midwest.

The more chargers we have on the road, especially fast chargers, I think that’s going to help with range anxiety that EV vehicle owners have.

WSAW reports (and don’t all EV drivers feel this way?):

It’s CWEC’s hope that one day drivers can pull up to charging stations near and far to minimize gas emissions, and it’s as easy as pulling up to a charging station and plugging it in.

Global Cleantech innovators

Cleantech Group, a San Francisco-based company that supports the development and marketability of clean technologies, has announced the 2021 Global Cleantech 100. It consists of the 100 most innovative and promising companies that “will take us from climate chaos to transformation.”

Cleantech Group presented a series of awards at the Cleantech Forum Europe (January 12-14, 2021, and Cleantech Forum San Francisco, January 19-21). Six companies won special awards.

Company of the Year was awarded in each of three regions to the highest-ranked company from that region:

  • North America: Carbon Engineering, developer of technologies for the capture of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere at industrial scale.
  • Europe & Israel: TWAICE, developer of predictive analytics software for batteries 
  • Asia Pacific: Dischangtie, provider of charging and management solutions for new energy vehicle fleets.

Other categories:

  • Rising Star of the Year, given to the highest-ranked new entrant on this year’s list: Boston Materials, manufacturer of advanced composite materials for light-weighting in transportation, aerospace, consumer electronics, and industrial applications
  • Early Stage Company of the Year, given to the highest-ranked early stage company: Lilac Solutions, provider of lithium extraction services
  • Graduate of the Yearawarded to the most impressive exit (as rated, by the financial investors in the expert panel) of a list alumnus. The exit must have happened in the 12 months prior to the cutoff date: OSIsoftprovider of enterprise software infrastructure for real-time data (acquisition by AVEVA).

Richard Youngman, CEO of Cleantech Group, said:

The 2021 list reflects the long-running mega-trends like decarbonization, digitization electrification, and the ever-increasing volumes of deployed renewable energy… Resilience is a new critical factor at play.

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Avatar for Michelle Lewis Michelle Lewis

Michelle Lewis is a writer and editor on Electrek and an editor on DroneDJ, 9to5Mac, and 9to5Google. She lives in White River Junction, Vermont. She has previously worked for Fast Company, the Guardian, News Deeply, Time, and others. Message Michelle on Twitter or at michelle@9to5mac.com. Check out her personal blog.