Gas prices in the San Diego region and elsewhere in California are climbing, and in some places, motorists are paying around $4 a gallon.

But some motorists are able to avoid pain at the pump.

By driving a plug-in electric vehicle (EV) and enrolling in our EV-TOU-5 pricing plan, electric car drivers in many cases are able to save money by programming their car to charge during the lowest-cost time period.

TOU stands for time of use, and under TOU plans, the cost of electricity varies depending on when you use it.

Under the EV-TOU-5 pricing plan, SDG&E customers can charge their cars overnight for 9 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) when they pay a basic monthly service fee of $16.

The 9 cents per kWh rate is available midnight to 6 a.m. on weekdays, and midnight to 2 p.m. on weekends and holidays. That price translates into the equivalent of paying 75 cents per gallon of gasoline for many drivers.

Customers Can Choose from Three EV Pricing Plans

In addition to EV-TOU-5, we also offer EV-TOU 2 and EV-TOU. Like the EV-TOU 5 plan, the EV-TOU-2 plan uses a customer’s existing meter to track both their home and EV electricity usage. The EV-TOU-2 plan charges 23 cents to 25 cents per kWh, depending on when the car is being charged.

The third and last EV pricing plan is called the EV-TOU plan, which has an identical pricing structure as EV-TOU-2. Customers who opt for this plan must have a separate meter installed at their own expense to track the electricity they are using to charge their car.

For this reason, most SDG&E customers choose to be on either EV-TOU-2 or EV-TOU-5.

To get an estimate of how much you can save in fuel costs by driving an electric car, check out this gas cost vs. electric cost calculator at sdge.com/ev-compare.

More information

To learn more about electric vehicles, shopping assistance and information on local, state and federal incentives, visit sdge.com/its-on.