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Walmart plans national expansion of EV charging network

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Walmart is making a big commitment to electric vehicle (EV) charging stations.

The discount giant plans to add EV charging stations to thousands of Walmart and Sam’s Club stores coast to coast by 2030. Walmart, which currently has almost 1,300 EV fast-charging stations at more than 280 U.S. Walmart and Sam’s Club locations, said it will build its own network of low-cost, fast-charging EV stations.

Our goal is to meet the needs of customers and members where they live and open the road to those driving across the country,” Vishal Kapadia, senior VP, energy transformation, Walmart, said in a corporate blog post. “Easy access to on-the-go charging is a game-changer for drivers who have been hesitant to purchase an EV for concerns they won’t be able to find a charger in a clean, bright and safe location when needed.”

Walmart originally made a commitment to deploy EV charging stations in partnership with Electrify America in 2018. In 2019, the companies announced they were planning to expand the relationship in the coming years with additional Electrify America charging stations located at Walmart stores across the country.

The first 120 Walmart sites with electric vehicle chargers from Electrify America, a wholly-owned Volkswagen subsidiary, were located across 34 U.S. states. The new charging stations will be deployed separate from this agreement, although the Electrify America chargers will remain in place.

[Read more: Walmart charges up electric vehicle commitment]

Walmart sets big regenerative goals

Walmart’s new initiative to greatly increase its network of EV charging stations fits in with larger regenerative efforts at the company. First announced in September 2020, Walmart’s regenerative goals include reaching zero emissions in global operations and committing to help protect, manage or restore at least 50 million acres of land and 1 million square miles of ocean by 2030.

Through innovations in energy and transportation, Walmart seeks to power 100% of its global operations with renewable sources of energy by 2035 and achieve our overall goal of zero emissions across global operations by 2040.  

[Read more: Walmart sets big new goal: Zero emissions by 2040]

Based in Bentonville, Ark., Walmart Inc. operates more than 10,500 stores and numerous e-commerce websites in 20 countries. Sam’s Club, a division of Walmart Inc., operates nearly 600 stores in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

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