EV-Ready Infrastructure & Conduit Stub-Out for New Construction

CALGreen (the California Green Building Standards Code) mandates that new construction and certain major renovations include EV-ready electrical infrastructure for a minimum percentage of parking spaces. Requirements vary by building type and code tier: for new multifamily construction with 17+ units, CALGreen Tier 1 requires EV-capable spaces (conduit only) for at least 10% of spaces, and Tier 2 requires EV-ready spaces (conduit + wiring to panel) for at least 25% of spaces. Commercial properties have different thresholds. Local jurisdictions may adopt stricter requirements. We confirm applicable requirements for your specific project type and jurisdiction.

EV-capable (CALGreen Tier 1) means conduit is installed from the electrical panel to the parking space, but no wiring is pulled through the conduit. This allows future wiring to be added without cutting concrete or demolishing walls. EV-ready (CALGreen Tier 2) means conduit plus electrical wiring is run from the panel to the stall location, with a terminated circuit — meaning a charger can be added at any time simply by mounting the unit and connecting it to the existing circuit. EV-ready provides more future flexibility at a higher upfront cost.

Installing conduit stub-outs during construction typically costs $300–$600 per stall in a surface lot, or $500–$900 per stall in a structured parking garage. Retrofitting conduit after construction in an existing concrete structure can cost $2,000–$8,000 per stall or more — because it involves core drilling, cutting structural elements, patching, and disruption to tenants. The cost savings of installing conduit during construction rather than retrofitting later can exceed $5,000 per stall. If you're building or doing a major renovation, the conduit investment now is nearly always the right decision.

Yes. Installing conduit for EV-ready infrastructure is an electrical installation that requires a building permit in California. Under AB 1236, local jurisdictions must approve EV charging-related permits within 20 business days. We handle all permit applications, documentation, and building department coordination as part of our standard EV-ready installation service.

Yes, and for many projects this is the most cost-efficient approach. When we install conduit and wiring to each stall, it's straightforward to also mount chargers on a subset of stalls — all within a single mobilization. If budget doesn't allow chargers on all stalls at once, we install conduit to 100% of target stalls and chargers on the first phase (20–40%), with additional charger installations added as demand grows.

EV-ready conduit stub-out (without the charger unit) is not eligible for CALeVIP or SCE Charge Ready rebates, which require a functioning charger to be installed. However, when conduit and charger installation happen together in the same project, the full project cost — including conduit and wiring — is eligible for the federal 30C tax credit (30% of total costs up to $100K per charger) and may qualify for CALeVIP and SCE Charge Ready depending on project scope.