Entergy Helps Grow Electric Vehicle Infrastructure With $160,000 Grant

Entergy selects Coulomb Technologies to bring charging stations to college campuses

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Jul 06, 2011, 11:00 ET

BATON ROUGE, La., July 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Entergy Corporation (NYSE: ETR) today announced it is working with Coulomb Technologies to fund and donate 16 electric vehicle charging stations at college campuses in and around Entergy's four-state service area.

The first two Entergy-funded charging stations were unveiled during a special event at Louisiana State University as Entergy and LSU launched one of the state's first major forays into the electric vehicle market. The event featured Dr. Michael Martin, LSU Chancellor; Bill Mohl, president and chief executive officer, Entergy Louisiana, LLC and Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, L.L.C.; and Allan G. Pulsipher, executive director, LSU Center for Energy Studies.

"Electric vehicles are gaining widespread attention and being embraced as an important technology solution for the nation's energy future. We know that the infrastructure must be in place to support the evolution of the technology, and we hope Entergy's donation of EV chargers to LSU will help start that process for the southern region," said Mohl. "This program is part of our deeper commitment to support technologies that foster environmental sustainability and provide for clean, efficient and affordable power for today and tomorrow."

The charging stations were donated to LSU through a $160,000 grant by Entergy's Environmental Initiatives Fund. Entergy is currently working with other universities in Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas to donate additional electric vehicle charging stations throughout the region.

"As the state's flagship university, it's fitting that we are the leader in accepting and installing Entergy's gift in the company's four-state service territory," said Martin. "This partnership will go a long way to establishing a cleaner environment and a cleaner way to travel for our citizens."

The LSU charging stations, which are free to use by all LSU faculty, staff and students, are among the first in the nation to be installed on a university campus for the sole purpose of providing free charges to electric car owners and for research purposes.

"Collecting usage data will allow Entergy and LSU to conduct critical research about EV chargers," said Brent Dorsey, director of corporate environmental programs for Entergy. "The goal is to determine the impacts and opportunities of EV charging, including length to charge, consumer charging profiles, time of day for charging, impacts on electric facilities and other consumer behavior and preferences."

The charging stations were manufactured by Coulomb Technologies and are part of Coulomb's ChargePoint® Network, the largest EV driver network in the world. Coulomb specializes in EV charging systems and operates in 14 countries. The charging station data collection is enabled by the ChargePoint® Network, which provides online access to the data including detailed usage reports, greenhouse gas and gasoline savings. Installation of the charging stations was completed by Verdek, Coulomb's south central regional distributor.

"We are proud to play a part in expanding the ChargePoint Network into the south central region," said Guy Mannino, CEO of Verdek. "As more zero-emission vehicles become available in the region, providing easy and convenient ways to charge is essential for consumer adoption of this new form of transportation."

Entergy's Environmental Initiatives Fund was established as a mechanism to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through innovative, promising projects and is part of the company's ongoing efforts to seek sustainable environmental solutions to its business.

Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of more than $11 billion and approximately 15,000 employees.

Entergy's online address is www.entergy.com.

Twitter: @EntergyMedia

SOURCE Entergy Corporation