The electric vehicle charging arm of one of the world's largest oil and gas companies has struck a deal with a real estate investment trust to add high-speed charging hubs at 75 retail properties across the United States.
BP Pulse, a subsidiary of energy conglomerate BP, plans to install and operate more than 900 “ultra-fast” charging stations that it calls Gigahubs at locations owned by Simon Property Group, an Indianapolis-based REIT that owns shopping malls, outlets and mixed-use properties across the country. The first charging stations will open to the public in early 2026 and “support nearly every make and model of EVs on the market today,” BP Pulse said in a statement.
Simon Property joins a slew of retailers including Ikea and Walmart that are accelerating the adoption of EVs and adding charging stations to their properties. Plans were announced last year for Mercedes-Benz to install its branded EV charging stations at more than 50 Simon Property locations in the U.S. and Canada by mid-2024.
The deal with Simon is part of London-based BP’s larger plan to expand its presence in the U.S. public EV charging market after opening its first U.S. location for a BP Pulse Gigahub in April at BP’s U.S. headquarters in Houston at 501 Westlake Park Blvd.
BP and Simon didn't disclose the properties where the charging stations will be added and didn't return requests for more information from CoStar News.
“We’re pleased to complete this deal with Simon and expand our ultra-fast charging network footprint in the U.S. The Simon portfolio aligns with (BP Pulse’s) strategy to deploy ultra-fast charging across the West Coast, East Coast, Sun Belt and Great Lakes,” BP Pulse CEO Richard Bartlett said in a statement.
BP announced plans in early 2023 to invest $1 billion into EV infrastructure across the United States by 2030, with half of that investment to be spent by the end of 2025. BP previously said it had received grants to add EV charging infrastructure at sites in California, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and Kentucky.
“BP Pulse is focused on taking actions to support the EV transition in the U.S. and provide a fantastic experience for the consumer. This deal with Simon further shows our commitment to our strategy to build high-speed charging infrastructure in the locations customers want and need,” BP Pulse Americas Director of Networks and Assets Mat Cranley told CoStar News in an email.
BP completed the $1.3 billion acquisition of TravelCenters of America last year, representing an opportunity to add EV chargers at TravelCenters of America's 280 gas stations and convenience stores across the United States. BP Pulse works with real estate partners and utilities to bring chargers where EV drivers need them, according to the statement.
"BP Pulse intends to continue to seek and build transformative industry collaborations in real estate required to scale our network and match the demand of current and future EV drivers,” BP Pulse Americas CEO Sujay Sharma said in the statement.
BP Pulse has a network of nearly 34,000 charging bays across the globe and plans to add have more than 100,000 stations in operation by 2030. The company’s four core markets are China, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.