US-based energy supplier Ava Community Energy and electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure development platform EV Realty have signed a long-term services contract to build a public EV charging hub in Oakland, California, US.

Realty was awarded this ten-year services contract with Ava following a competitive tendering procedure.

It will now design, build, own, and manage a 33-stall EV charging hub at the Oakland City Center Garage, conveniently placed to serve the nearby neighbourhood, which is said to be "disadvantaged".

Under a multi-year deal, Realty chose renewable energy semiconductor manufacturer EV Connect to help build and serve the project.

The project claims to be Oakland’s largest public fast-charging EV centre and will contribute to lowering emissions in an area with low air quality.

California state policy seeks to improve equity in electrification by allocating investments to neighbourhoods it sees as underserved.

Construction work is set to commence in early 2024 and is predicted to be finished by the fourth quarter of that year.

Ava CEO Nick Chaset said: “This project represents an innovative blueprint to scale EV charging infrastructure deployment and is another example of Ava’s long-term leadership in supporting California’s energy transition, first with solar and wind power purchases, and more recently with their focus on EV charging and distributed energy resources.

“Our collective hope is that this unique project structure provides a blueprint for how utilities and public power agencies can pull forward EV charging infrastructure deployment at scale, both here in California and across the US.”