Highland Electric Fleets and PowerOptions Partner to Provide Charging-as-a-Service to Schools, Municipalities, and Nonprofits in New England

BEVERLY, Mass. (June 13, 2023) — PowerOptions, the largest energy consortium in New England, has selected Highland Electric Fleets, the leading provider of school bus fleet electrification-as-a-service in North America, to serve PowerOptions’ 495 member organizations as a charging-as-a-service provider. Under the program agreement, Highland will provide PowerOptions members with a new procurement alternative to make accessing electric vehicle (EV) supply equipment and charging services simple and affordable.

“Charging-as-a-service allows us to deliver even better value to our members for electric vehicles and electric vehicle charging stations,” said Heather Takle, President and CEO of PowerOptions. “The innovative structure of this new offering protects our members by shifting the risks of execution, implementation, and operation to the developers.”

As the largest energy-buying consortium in New England, PowerOptions issued a region-wide RFP for EV supply equipment and charging services. Highland was selected based on its experience, qualifications, and pricing. The program agreement provides multiple benefits to PowerOptions members, including: saving time by not having to run their own RFPs for EV supply equipment and related services; saving money by leveraging competitive pricing; and reducing risk by using PowerOptions’ pre-negotiated contract.

“We are excited to work with PowerOptions to simplify electric vehicle equipment and charging procurement for educational, municipal, healthcare, and other nonprofit and public organizations in New England,” said Amy McGuire, Director of Market Development at Highland. “Demand for cleaner, healthier transportation is growing, and this partnership will help accelerate deployment and make electrification simpler and more affordable for more organizations.”

Highland’s solutions include both full-service, turnkey fleet electrification and depot electrification (EV supply equipment and charging services) – all for a fixed, annual fee over 8–15-year contracts. With PowerOptions, Highland will focus on successfully deploying its “Depot” electrification services product for the nonprofit’s members in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.