Penske Truck Leasing announced it has joined the Charging Interface Initiative (CharIN), a worldwide industry alliance focused on promoting Combined Charging System (CCS) as the global standard for charging electric vehicles (EVs) of all types.

Penske will focus its attention on helping to promote electric vehicle charging standards for commercial vehicles in North America by participating with the group's "High Power Charging for Commercial Vehicles Task Force" (HPCCV Task Force). Penske Truck Leasing is the first in its industry to join the CharIN organization.

"As a leading services provider to commercial fleets, we feel standardization around electric vehicle charging and charging stations will help accelerate the use of electric vehicles within the transportation industry," said Brian Hard, President and CEO of Penske Truck Leasing. "The interoperability of vehicle charging stations over the road is essential for commercial fleet uptime, efficiency, maintenance, and general ease of use for the industry."

Penske Truck Leasing sees increased interest among its commercial customers related to electric vehicles. Improving standardization with electric vehicle charging may help reduce complexity for fleet operators and truck drivers as well as maintenance providers, and recharging/refueling providers.

"We are thrilled to have Penske Truck Leasing as a CharIN member and active contributor to the work of the HPCCV Task Force. Our goal is to extend CCS capabilities to meet the requirements for commercial EV charging. The input from end users is the key to our success. Penske is the first fleet operator to join our team and this brings this important work one step closer to successful completion," said Oleg Logvinov, spokesperson for CharIN in North America and President and CEO of IoTecha.