Toyota Motor North America (TMNA) has joined seven other automakers as an investor in IONNA to support the buildout of its high-powered charging network for battery electric vehicles (BEVs) across North America.

The other OEM investors are BMW, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, and Stellantis.

TNMA said the investment will give Toyota and Lexus customers access to the public network of DC fast chargers IONNA will begin deploying later this year.

IONNA plans to install at least 30,000 charging ports in North America by 2030, and stations will include North American Charging Standard (NACS) and Combined Charging System (CCS) connectors.

“We are excited to announce our support of IONNA to deploy DC fast chargers throughout the U.S. and Canada,” said Ted Ogawa, TMNA president and CEO, in a press release. “We believe this will not only promote the adoption of BEVs and increase customer confidence in the technology, but it will provide our Toyota and Lexus customers with access to IONNA’s rapidly growing charging network in North America.”

IONNA plans to continue the buildout of additional stations throughout the decade.

“We are delighted to welcome Toyota to our growing IONNA family,” said Seth Cutler, CEO of IONNA. “Their vision for the future of electric mobility in North America aligns perfectly with our mission to push the boundaries for the highest standards of quality, reliability, and customer experience. This partnership marks another significant achievement of many to come in our joint journey to transform EV charging and spearhead the adoption of sustainable transportation in North America.”

Toyota currently offers two mass-market BEVs in the U.S. and Canada — the Toyota bZ4X and the Lexus RZ. The OEM recently announced plans for two all-new three-row BEV SUVs that will be assembled at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky (TMMK) and Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana (TMMI).

By 2030, Toyota aspires to offer 30 BEV models globally across its Toyota and Lexus brand nameplates and produce up to 3.5 million BEVs annually.

The number of publicly available EV chargers increased 5% during Q1 2024 from the previous quarter while total EVs on the road increased 8%, according to a recent report from the Alliance for Automotive Innovation.

Nationwide, 344,533 EVs were registered in Q1 2024 but only 7,247 new public chargers were added which is a ratio of 48 new EVs for every new public port. In total, there are 4.7 million EVs on the road and 167,213 public charging outlets which is a ratio of 28 EVs for every public port, the report says.

Range anxiety continues to be a barrier to EV adoption but the rising cost of fuel and availability of charging ports (22% in the U.S. and 30% in the U.S. last year) could spur an increase in EV purchases especially as “exorbitant EV premiums are seemingly a thing of the past,” according to Mitchell International’s latest EV trends report.

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Featured image provided by Toyota and IONNA