Hertz partners with BP to build out EV charging network

Hertz Global Holdings Inc. is linking up with oil giant BP to build out a network of charging stations in the U.S., a move to help bolster the country’s electric-vehicle infrastructure.  

The two companies’ memorandum of understanding, announced Tuesday, aligns Hertz with BP’s goal of operating more than 100,000 chargers by 2030, 90 percent of which it says will be fast-charging.

Hertz plans to electrify a quarter of its rental car fleet by the end of 2024. The deal with BP comes a week after it agreed to buy 175,000 EVs from General Motors following similar purchases of battery-powered models from Tesla Inc. and Polestar. Hertz hopes to spur EV rentals by making it easier to find a charging station.

“We want to be part of the solution to building out a nationwide infrastructure,” Jeff Nieman, senior vice president of operations initiatives at Hertz, said in an interview. “We’re looking at locations that will have the biggest fleets.”

The agreement with BP is part of a growing network of some 3,000 charging stations available to Hertz vehicles by the end of 2022.

BP got into the charging business by acquiring acquiring Amply Power. The newly-acquired company, rebranded as BP Pulse, started installing chargers at 25 Hertz locations in the US this year.