Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) announced the opening of the first of its SMECO EV Recharge public charging stations for electric vehicles. The station is located at the St. Mary’s County Public Library and Garvey Activity Senior Center at 23630 Hayden Farm Lane in Leonardtown and has 24-hour access.
A video of the virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony was presented at the St. Mary’s County Commissioners’ meeting on Tuesday, March 2. The video can be seen on Channel 95 on the St. Mary’s County cable system, on YouTube at https://youtu.be/ftxT8WRPC3g or on SMECO’s website at https://www.smeco.coop/videos.
A second charging station site in Leonardtown is located on Park Avenue between Guyther Drive and Court House Drive. SMECO has broken ground in Charles County for a charger to be installed at Laurel Springs Regional Park in La Plata, and the cooperative is working with Calvert and Prince George’s counties to designate suitable locations for new charging stations, as well.
Up to 60 SMECO EV Recharge charging stations will be installed over the next four years as part of a pilot program authorized by the Public Service Commission. The SMECO EV Recharge installations will include Level 2 chargers and DC-powered fast chargers (DCFC) available for public use.
EV owners can use the Greenlots Mobile App to find the nearest station, start and end charging, make payments, and receive real-time notifications. SMECO’s EV Recharge stations will serve the growing population of electric vehicle owners who are transitioning away from gas-powered vehicles. The Level 2 chargers will cost 18 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) and the DCFC will cost 34 cents per kWh. SMECO’s EV Recharge rates are based on average costs for other charging stations and are subject to change.
For introductory information about electric vehicles (EV) and factors to consider before purchasing an EV, visit SMECO’s website at smeco.coop/EVintro. For more detailed information about battery and hybrid EV models, driving range, battery capacity, cost savings, charging stations, and more, go to smeco.coop/chooseEV.
