Energy Wants Electric Cars to Charge in 15 Minutes or Less

Electric vehicles are quieter, cheaper to run and friendlier to the environment than their gas-powered counterparts, but while stopping at the pump takes a few minutes, charging a battery can take a few hours.

But that may change soon.

The Energy Department announced Monday it’s investing $19 million in research to let you juice up your ride in a fraction of the time and go further on the road. The funds are divided among twelve different projects in academia, industry and government, each geared toward building batteries capable of “extreme fast charging.”

Funds were awarded by the department’s Vehicle Technologies Office, which invests in early-stage research for eco-friendly transportation tech. The group ultimately aims to build a battery that costs less than $100 per kilowatt-hour with a range over 300 miles and a charge time of 15 minutes or less by 2028.
More>>