Volkswagen Group subsidiary Electrify America has raised $450 million in a deal that includes its first external investor as it aims to accelerate its rollout of ultra-fast charging stations in the U.S. and Canada. 

The German industrial company Siemens will invest more than $100 million making it the first outside investor in the project. Volkswagen said it plans to increase its capital investment in Electrify America beyond its original commitment of $2 billion through 2026. Siemens itself has invested in several electrification companies, including Swedish battery startup Northvolt and wireless charging startup WiTricity, as well as Electrify Americas rival ChargePoint. 

The money will help Electrify America toward its goal of more than doubling its footprint to 10,000 ultra-fast chargers across 1,800 charging stations in both countries by 2026. The company currently operates 3,500 ultra-fast chargers at 800 stations. The U.S. has a long way to go in adding infrastructure for electric vehicles, with states like California attempting to triple EV sales within four years. The country requires a sixfold increase in average annual public charging installations over the next four years to meet federal benchmarks, according to the 2022 Bloomberg Intelligence Global Battery-Electric Vehicles Outlook released in June.