After months of speculation, the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Grant Program is back and we at Electric Era can’t wait to get back to work on these crucial infrastructure projects.
On August 11, 2025, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) released new guidance for the NEVI Program, which had been paused since January 2025. States had thirty days to draft and submit new State Plans, outlining their approach to deploying apportioned NEVI funds. The deadline just passed, meaning NEVI is officially back at cruising speed!
So, what stays the same, and what’s different this time around?
What stayed: Core requirements
The minimum standards and requirements from past years of NEVI are unchanged. These include:
- Minimum uptime per port: Each NEVI-funded charging port must have an average annual uptime greater than 97%.
- Quantity of Ports and Power Level: Stations along Alternative Fuel Corridors (AFCs) will continue to have at least four network-connected DC fast charging ports, each capable of simultaneously delivering up to 150 kW.
- Availability: Charging stations located along and designed to serve users of designated AFCs must be available and accessible 24/7 year-round.
- Long-Term Stewardship: Sites will be maintained for 5 years from the initial date of operation.
What’s new: Simplifying state considerations and focusing on American retailers
Increased focus on American retailers
When it comes to station siting, the latest NEVI guidance shifts attention squarely towards American retailers - convenience store, grocers, gas station owners, and other retail owners positioned along the US highway network.
To date, the majority of EV charging locations have been developed by charging network operators - think Tesla, Electrify America, or EVgo - who lease land to build stations. However, more and more retailers are choosing to own charging stations on their property, gaining greater control over the charging experience for their customers.
Previously, NEVI rules didn’t place much emphasis on land ownership, in other words, whether the operator of a charging station also owned the land beneath it. That changes with the new guidance. FHWA now explicitly “encourages the selection of charging locations where the charging station operator is also the site host (i.e., property owner).”
The implication is clear: this creates a major opening for fuel retailers, truck stops, and other off-highway landowners to play a more direct role in the NEVI buildout.
AFCs & Fully Built Out (FBO) Certification
Previously, States had to meet strict spacing and coverage requirements to be deemed “Fully Built Out” (FBO). This meant having NEVI-compliant charging stations every 50 miles, within 1 mile of all state AFCs. States were limited to funding charging stations on AFCs until achieving FBO status.
New NEVI Guidance lifts the rigid 50 mile rule. Moving forward, if a State can provide a justification to support that their designated AFCs are built out and the FHWA agrees, the State is fully built out.
The impact here remains to be seen. After achieving FBO status, States are able to use NEVI Program funds with greater discretion, as long as funds are spent on EV charging infrastructure on public roads or other publicly accessible locations. Some States may continue with a standard mileage interval along AFCs, while others may shift their focus toward community charging and destination charging applications. Overall, States have gained greater flexibility as to how they develop their charging networks, hopefully empowering them to prioritize deployments that meet their specific needs.
State Plans
New NEVI guidance focuses solely on ensuring states cover what is required by law, reducing the workload for States as they prepare new State Plans.
The updated guidance encourages states to consider the distance between charging stations, the proximity of charging stations to existing off-highway travel centers, fuel retailers, and small businesses, and plans to ensure the long term operations and maintenance of the EV charging infrastructure.
Overall, reductions to required content in State Plans reflects FHWA’s new minimalist approach, having states speak to statutory requirements and little else.
Key takeaways
The new NEVI guidance marks a shift in the balance between the FHWA and States: States now benefit from increased flexibility, likely leading to faster but potentially less uniform charging network buildouts nationwide.
- Prioritizing Direct Landowners: The guidance now favors fuel retailers, truck stops, and other off-highway locations who own the land where charging stations will be built. This creates an opportunity for these retailers to take a more direct role in the NEVI program and drive a new customer base to their retail locations.
- Relaxing "Fully Built Out" (FBO) rules: The 50-mile spacing rule for charging stations on Alternative Fuel Corridors (AFCs) has been dropped. States can now justify their AFCs as "fully built out" without meeting this strict distance requirement. This gives states greater flexibility to use NEVI funds for other EV charging projects once FBO status is achieved.
- Simplifying State Plans: The updated guidance reduces the recommended content for state plans, eliminating requirements that go beyond statutory requirements. This provides states with more autonomy in how they prioritize and plan their EV charging networks.
Our take: How EV infrastructure grants can go further
Progress in the buildout of grant-funded charging stations has been hindered by several factors, including slow administrative processes, lengthy deployment timelines, and inconsistent uptime of active stations. These challenges have broadly affected the deployment and operation of public charging infrastructure nationwide.
We have several thoughts on how EV infrastructure programs broadly can go further to prioritize efficiency and reliability.
Improving deployment speed: Despite existing technologies that allow for rapid installation, the majority of EV infrastructure projects still take years to complete. To address delays, funding agencies could incorporate mechanisms to encourage faster project completion. This could look like setting clearer operational deadlines within contracts, adjusting funding levels based on adherence to predetermined project milestones, and incentivizing the use of innovative technologies to reduce deployment timelines.
Leveraging technology for efficient deployment timelines: Time-intensive grid upgrades are a major factor in long charging station deployment timelines. Promoting the use of technologies that reduce the required grid connection for high-power charging stations would support improved timelines and greater efficiency for DCFC projects.
One such solution is to co-locate EV charging with energy storage, a strategy that can improve installation timelines and reduce costs by requiring a smaller grid connection and thus a faster, less-costly grid upgrade. Electric Era’s patented battery-backed station architecture takes this exact approach, enabling high power charging with a limited grid draw. Electric Era's patented above-the-grid-charging capability is a unique approach to electric vehicle charging station architecture that allows for increased energy throughput to vehicles while alleviating site power supply constraints. This technology enabled our rapid deployment as the first NEVI-funded station in New Mexico.
Focusing on reliability: While lots of grant programs include a minimum uptime requirement, few if any include strong enforcement mechanisms for that standard. Despite receiving public funds to subsidize private assets, penalties for non-compliance are typically minor and carry no substantial consequences. To ensure chargers are truly reliable and a prudent use of public funds, grant agencies could better hold developers accountable by:
- Imposing larger financial penalties for failing to meet the uptime requirements.
- Considering a previous grantee’s existing uptime performance when selecting them for new projects. This would ensure that funds do not continue to flow to providers that have demonstrated difficulty in reaching an established minimum uptime requirement.
This approach would ensure that reliability is a top priority, not an afterthought.
The road ahead: What we've seen from States so far
Looking ahead, we can’t wait to get back to working with States and partners on NEVI projects. Though not all States have responded to the new NEVI guidance, this is some of what we’ve seen publicly from States so far:
- Arizona: The Arizona Department of Transportation has requested feedback on its 2025 State EV Plan and anticipates reissuing a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Phase 2 of its NEVI program shortly, in Fall 2025.
- Maine: Efficiency Maine was hot off the blocks, releasing an RFP only 10 days after the new guidance dropped. Request for Proposals (RFP) for Public DC Fast Chargers: Phase 10 is open now, due January 20, 2025.
- Minnesota: The Minnesota Department of Transportation has received approval for their new State Plan, meaning a Round 3 RFP is in the works. MN DOT also shared that they are planning on requesting FBO status from the FHWA.
- Oregon: The Oregon Department of Transportation has submitted a new State Plan and plans to launch Round 2 of their NEVI solicitations in the Fall 2025.
- South Carolina: The South Carolina Department of Transportation has picked back up its work on the NEVI program and, as of August, had plans to submit an updated deployment plan by the September deadline.
- Washington: The Washington Department of Transportation submitted their 2025 NEVI Deployment Plan Update to FHWA on September 10. The plan details how Washington plans to build out their network of EV charging and makes plans for a Round 2 NEVI solicitation in early 2026.
Let’s get to work!
As new RFPs are released, Electric Era is excited to work with States and partner with retailers, leveraging our technology to ensure a faster, more reliable, and more efficient buildout that serves the ever growing number of EV drivers across the United States.
Since NEVI began, Electric Era has helped our partners secure nearly $25,000,000 in NEVI funding across eight states. Across all of our applications, Electric Era has been awarded 85% of the time.
Active NEVI-funded Electric Era sites are open in Kentucky and New Mexico and boast an average uptime of 98%. In New Mexico, we are proud to have launched the State's first NEVI station, completing the site in just over six months. Located just off I-10 in rural southern New Mexico, this station faced a challenging utility upgrade timeline. This station’s rapid deployment timeline would not have been possible without our patented battery-backed technology and a turnkey solution that included site acquisition, station design, utility coordination, and construction.
But the work doesn’t stop there! Electric Era has NEVI stations in the works in Pennsylvania, Colorado, California, Connecticut, Delaware, and Ohio.
If you’re interested in learning more about partnering with Electric Era on future NEVI projects, please reach out to sales@electricera.tech.