ChargePoint is teaming up with OBE Power to tackle one of the biggest barriers facing electric vehicle drivers who live in apartments and condominiums: reliable home charging. The companies plan to deploy roughly 2,500 EV charging ports at multifamily residences across the United States, giving more residents access to Level 2 charging where they live.
In the United States, most electric vehicle charging happens at home. However, that advantage is not always available to drivers who live in apartment buildings, condos or other shared residential properties.
Many of these residents cannot simply install a private wallbox in a garage or driveway. As a result, they often depend on public charging networks, even for daily charging needs that would be easier and cheaper to handle overnight at home.
ChargePoint and OBE Power want to address that gap by bringing chargers directly to multifamily housing sites. The rollout is expected to begin this year and will cover approximately 2,500 charging ports.
The project is designed as a turnkey solution for property owners. OBE Power will own and operate the charging equipment, meaning landlords and building operators will not have to make the upfront investment themselves.
OBE Power will also handle energy cost reimbursement, carbon credit revenue, ongoing maintenance, insurance and repairs at no cost to landlords. The idea is to remove the financial and operational friction that often prevents apartment buildings from installing EV chargers.
If drivers experience charging issues, OBE Power will be responsible for managing those complaints. ChargePoint will provide the charging hardware and network technology, though charging sessions will not be free for users.
ChargePoint and OBE Power already work together on EV charger deployments at hotels and other hospitality facilities. The new agreement expands that partnership into multifamily residential properties, including condos and apartment communities.
According to the companies, the first chargers are expected to be installed at condo properties across the country in the near term. The broader goal is to make EV ownership more practical for people who do not have access to a private garage or dedicated home charger.
Level 2 charging is especially well suited to apartment buildings because vehicles are typically parked for long periods overnight or during the day. While Level 2 chargers are slower than high-power DC fast chargers, they are usually enough for regular daily charging at residential sites, offices, shopping centers and similar locations.
According to data cited from the Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center, ChargePoint currently operates more than 45,000 EV charging stations in the United States, with a combined 80,215 charging ports. More than 75,000 of those ports are Level 2 chargers.
The additional 2,500 ports would raise ChargePoint’s Level 2 footprint to around 78,000 ports, further strengthening its position in the US charging market.
Access to convenient home charging is one of the main reasons EV ownership works well for many drivers. For apartment and condo residents, the lack of on-site charging can make an electric car harder to justify, even when public charging options are available nearby.
By shifting the cost and responsibility away from landlords, ChargePoint and OBE Power are trying to make charger installation easier for multifamily properties. If the model works, it could help reduce one of the most common obstacles for urban and apartment-based EV buyers in the United States.
