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NRG's eVgo charging stations hope to catch the eyes of Texas
EV charging station announcements are almost becoming commonplace (keyword: almost), but not so much that we aren't happy to welcome one more. This week NRG Energy unveiled it's first eVgo branded "Freedom Station" at a Dallas Walgreens, and aims to pepper the map with a total of 60 such units by Labor Day. Each eVgo freedom station will pack both a quick charging 480V AC/DC converter (juicing up a Nissan Leaf to 80 percent in about 30 minutes), as well as a 240V Level 2 charger (netting 25 miles of "go" per charging hour). NRG plans to cover the Dallas / Fort Worth and Houston areas with 120 of these guys by the end of 2012. Like others before it, the eVgo network plans to follow a subscription model -- with the premiere plan ($89 a month on a three year contract) not only covering the cost of usage at eVgo charging stations, but that of electricity used at your home charging dock, too. Toss in a handful of generous EV owners rocking PlugShare, and Dallas has the makings of a low-emissions wonderland.
Houston will be home to America's largest car charging network, identity crisis
Everything is somewhat more gargantuan in Texas, so its only natural that Houston has its eye on having the largest network of electric vehicle chargers in the country. The plan is a privately funded brain-child of power plant operator NRG Energy, which hopes to install 150 charging stations in the 25 mile vicinity of downtown Houston starting in February. Chargers will be placed at common retail locations such as Walgreens and Best Buy, but given that 80 to 90 percent of charging will occur in homes, an $89 all-you-can-juice monthly plan will also include the installation of 240-volt charging systems in residences. NRG doesn't expect to turn a profit on its $10 million investment for several years, but hopes that taking the proactive step will create a lucrative business in the future as electric vehicle prices (hopefully) hit the skids. The company also wants to build a similar network in Dallas in early 2011, and perhaps San Antonio and Austin in the future as well. Still, while the plans are admirable for the home of big-oil, compared to London's government-backed 1,300 station plan, NRG's Houston aspirations still seem positively Rhode Island-sized.
Time Warner Cable reselling WiMAX later this year in Charlotte, Dallas, and two mystery markets
It's not really that surprising given its investment in Clearwire, but Time Warner Cable is now ready to join in on the WiMAX fun. The company plans to resell the mobile broadband in four US cities by the end of the year, but so far it's only revealed two of them: Charlotte, North Carolina, and Dallas, Texas. Meanwhile, cable competitor Comcast has already opened up its WiMAX shop in Portland, Oregon, and plans to hit Atlanta, Chicago, and Philadelphia by the end of this year. No word on prices, but we don't expect it to stray far from the current $20 to $50 monthly fees. We're also a bit in the dark as to when we can expect the rollout this year, so if you're in one of those two markets and have a strong itch for 4G wireless, better start filling up that piggy bank now, just to be safe.
WSVG coming to Dallas this week
The World Series of Video Games is making their stop in Dallas, Texas starting tomorrow, July 5th and ending on Sunday, July 8th. And as always, World of Warcraft 3v3 arena tournaments are on the agenda! I'm afraid registration for the event is closed (though if you show up you can register for a chance at a competition spot opening up), but if you're in the area, you can certainly attend and watch some skilled arena players at work (for the $10 cost of admission). The real question is whether the pros at Team Pandemic will win again: so far, they've won both of the WSVG's WoW arena tournaments. And remember -- one lucky arena team will be winning an all-expenses paid trip to BlizzCon 2007!
