LONG BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 6, 2025--
PowerFlex, in partnership with the Los Angeles County Internal Services Department (ISD) and the Los Angeles County Development Authority (LACDA), celebrated the installation of new Level 2 electric vehicle charging stations at the LACDA Carmelitos community in Long Beach today. The installation includes 20 Level 2 ports and supports Los Angeles County’s goal of installing 15,000 EV chargers on County properties by 2035, expanding equitable access for residents and the wider community.
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LA County ISD Fleet vehicle using new EV chargers at Carmelitos Community Center in Long Beach, CA
Newly installed public and private EV chargers in Carmelitos Community Center
Carmelitos Community members engage with PowerFlex employees at Carmelitos Charge Up! event
Teams from LA County ISD, LACDA, SCE and PowerFlex cut the ribbon at the Carmelitos Charge Up! event.
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Hosted at the Carmelitos Community Center, the “Charge Up Carmelitos!” event featured remarks from both public- and private-sector partners. Ten of the new chargers will serve Carmelitos residents and are accessible to the public, while the remaining 10 chargers are designated for LACDA fleet operations, all supporting a broader clean transportation initiative on site. Additional projects include DC Fast charging for a community shuttle and a solar carport capable of powering EV charging.
“Today’s event is a powerful example of public–private partnership delivering real, local benefits. Working with LA County ISD and LACDA, we’re making EV charging more reliable and accessible for residents and the community at large — while building the scalable infrastructure needed to meet the County’s clean transportation goals,” said Raphael Declercq, CEO of PowerFlex.
“As the County’s energy lead department, our role is to ensure that our decarbonization strategy is deeply rooted in social equity. The Carmelitos project site represents more than just an EV charging deployment; it symbolizes the County’s commitment to prioritizing sustainable infrastructure in historically underserved communities. This project, driven by a strong multi-agency partnership, paves the way for a more accessible future for the County,” said Michael Owh, Director of the County of Los Angeles Internal Services Department.
“The successful execution of this project is a testament to the powerful collaboration between ISD, LACDA, PowerFlex and the William C. Velasquez Institute. By deploying affordable electric vehicle technology, we are directly advancing the County’s goal of facilitating the transition to cleaner transportation for all residents. This community-centered initiative serves as a scalable blueprint for expanding sustainable mobility throughout the County,” said Minh Le, General Manager of the County of Los Angeles Internal Services Department Energy and Environmental Service.
“The LACDA has made a deliberate commitment to integrating sustainability features into its infrastructure improvements, including the installation of solar panels at several public housing sites. Today, we are proud to celebrate this new partnership that brings EV charging stations to Carmelitos, which will advance access to sustainable transportation not only for our residents but for the community as well,” said Emilio Salas, LACDA Executive Director.
Built with PowerFlex technology and supported by Southern California Electric’s Charge Ready program, the Carmelitos chargers highlight how coordinated investment, community-focused design, and innovative partners can achieve near-term emissions reductions and long-term resilience. ISD and LACDA are working together on additional projects at other sites to further expand access to affordable, reliable EV charging for residents.
About PowerFlex
PowerFlex is a clean technology solutions company making the transformation to carbon-free electrification and transportation possible. Our adaptive energy optimization platform PowerFlex X™ monitors, controls, and co-optimizes onsite assets like EV chargers, solar, energy storage, and microgrids — reducing overall energy costs through patented algorithms that maximize distributed energy resources.
PowerFlex is the second-largest installer of commercial solar in the United States, with over 500 megawatts (MW) of total solar capacity plus 50+ megawatt-hours (MWh) of battery energy storage. Combined, our solar and energy storage projects offset 460,000 metric tons of CO 2 each year. We also manage more than 50,000 EV chargers nationwide, making us the second-largest EV charging provider in the U.S. in terms of Level 2 port management.
PowerFlex is backed by EDF power solutions and Manulife Investments.
Visit powerflex.com for more information and connect with us on LinkedIn and YouTube.
About LA County Internal Services Department
The Internal Services Department (ISD) is a general services organization that supports the County of Los Angeles by providing a range of support services to other County departments in the areas of purchasing, contracting, facilities, information technology, and other support services, such as energy and environmental (EES) programs management, parking, and mail services. ISD administers high-impact public programs, including SoCalRen, Electrifyze (which promotes Electric Vehicle adoption), and EBD Program. ISD has also been designated by the County of Los Angeles Board of Supervisors as the lead department for residential broadband service and digital equity initiatives. For more information on ISD, visit isd.lacounty.gov.
LA County ISD Fleet vehicle using new EV chargers at Carmelitos Community Center in Long Beach, CA
Newly installed public and private EV chargers in Carmelitos Community Center
Carmelitos Community members engage with PowerFlex employees at Carmelitos Charge Up! event
Teams from LA County ISD, LACDA, SCE and PowerFlex cut the ribbon at the Carmelitos Charge Up! event.
After her grandmother’s house in Caracas narrowly survived last month’s devastating back-to-back earthquakes, Alessandra Izaguirre was desperate to help Venezuela.
“Seeing my grandma and all these people affected made me feel like I had to do something, even if it was from the U.S.," said the 18-year-old, who has spent the last couple weeks preparing food for volunteers at the Doral, Florida headquarters of the nonprofit Global Empowerment Mission.
Izaguirre is one of thousands of people who have participated in an exceptionally large grassroots humanitarian effort based at GEM, supported by donations from across the U.S. and beyond and still going strong nearly three weeks after the catastrophe.
Hundreds of volunteers still show up each day at GEM's warehouses in Doral, where about half the population is of Venezuelan descent. They sort donated supplies –– curated to address the latest needs –– and prepare them for transport to Caracas on daily flights.
GEM's system, facilitated by the U.S. State Department, has given members of the Venezuelan diaspora and others an outlet to support the ongoing crisis, and a trusted mechanism to send aid amid widespread concern about theft and corruption on the part of Venezuelan officials.
“Whatever we can get to the Venezuelan public is what counts,” said Izaguirre.
The effort also underscores the stunning dynamic shift between the U.S. and Venezuela since President Donald Trump ordered then-Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro’s capture in an early morning raid on Jan 3. With military personnel again on the ground, the U.S. has assumed a response role that would have been unimaginable before January, when Trump said the U.S. would “run” the country and seized control of its oil exports.
“This is a whole different animal,” said GEM founder and president Michael Capponi, who was denied entry to Venezuela while trying to deliver aid during the reign of Maduro, who long rejected humanitarian help, equating it to foreign intervention. “We land a private plane, it gets unloaded by U.S. soldiers, it goes in a truck we pay for and to a warehouse that we completely control. It doesn’t touch the hands of the Venezuelan government.”
The 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes struck 39 seconds apart on June 24, killing at least 4,500 people with thousands more still missing. They destroyed and damaged over 850 buildings, leaving 17,000 displaced and ravaging critical infrastructure providing electricity, clean water and sanitation.
GEM's headquarters became a donation collection point almost immediately. Some donors were initially skeptical that aid could reach those who needed it without being stolen or misused by a notoriously corrupt government, Capponi said. After GEM made its first successful aid distribution, the movement grew bigger than he'd seen in decades of global response.
Companies like Goya, Walmart and Amazon contribute supplies while professional sports teams have donated funds. But much of the aid is still amassed from thousands of individuals' contributions.
“They’re going to Walmart with their credit card, buying 15 cans of food and bringing it in a shopping bag,” said Capponi. “It doesn’t sound like a lot, but when it’s 2,000 people... it’s an enormous amount of aid.”
Lines to drop off aid at GEM have at times been so long police had to help manage traffic. Supplies arrive from across North America: Two brothers drove a U-Haul of goods from Canada. Another group arrived from Mexico. Trucks have rolled in from Nevada, Texas and California.
As many as 1,000 volunteers across three warehouses sort and pack. They fill pallets with essentials like diapers, and assemble individual care packages with enough sustenance and hygiene items to last two people about five days. They also tuck in notes of encouragement: “Te queremos Venezuela,” one reads. “We love you, Venezuela.”
GEM aims to deliver at least 100,000 care packages monthly for the next three-to-six months, while also addressing upcoming needs, like longer term housing.
Volunteers have taken vacations from work to put in hours at the warehouses, said Billy Richardson, director of U.S. logistics. Others arrive after work. “We almost have to kick them out at the end of the day,” Richardson said.
Mariela Vila showed up because she remembers how affected she was when Hurricane Maria pummeled her homeland of Puerto Rico in 2017. “The Latino community in general gathered together to help Puerto Rico, and that made me feel really well,” said Vila, 25, who has worked full-day shifts at GEM since the effort began. “So I felt the need to help Venezuela.”
Nearly one million pounds (454,000 kilograms) of supplies have been deployed so far from GEM headquarters to its recently leased Caracas warehouses. GEM collaborates with local nonprofits and trusted community members to organize distributions in the hardest hit areas, often twice daily.
But it is the U.S. State Department that facilitates the shipments with the Venezuelan government, making it possible for GEM to operate in the country, even getting help from the U.S. military. On Saturday, U.S. Marines landed an amphibious landing craft on a Venezuelan beach and unloaded GEM packages that were then passed to 2,000 people lined up for aid.
Partnerships with GEM and additional nonprofits allow the U.S. to tap into existing logistics and donation mechanisms, a State Department spokesperson told The Associated Press, adding that the effort with GEM leverages "the Venezuelan American diaspora and private partners who want to donate.”
Several other U.S.-based humanitarian groups told The Associated Press they also have been able to operate without interference from Venezuelan officials. Some depend on collaborations with established local nonprofits.
Despite the U.S. presence, some still question whether the Trump administration is doing enough to help Venezuela, especially since it controls billions of dollars in oil revenue.
“There are a lot of transparency questions that linger on the use of that fund in a moment in which Venezuelans really need that money to be used for the protection of Venezuelans,” said Laura Cristina Dib, Venezuela program director at the human rights organization Washington Office on Latin America.
John M. Barrett, U.S. charge d’affairs for Venezuela, told reporters last week that the interim government has been “fully compliant in terms of our requests to advance this massive humanitarian response" and that revenue from Venezuelan oil production, currently controlled by the U.S. Treasury, is being made available for relief efforts.
Asked for further details, the State Department spokesperson said “State and Treasury are supporting the Venezuelan interim government’s budgetary operations, improving Venezuela’s liquidity and access to capital during the recovery," adding that the U.S. has contributed over $386 million to earthquake response independent of the oil revenue.
In the coastal city of Maiquetía last week, Yoniel Reyes sat inside a tent, examining the contents of a GEM package he’d just received during an aid distribution, packed and sealed 1,300 miles away in Doral. There were instant meals, bottles of water, canned food, hydration powder and hygiene kits.
“I never imagined I would be receiving aid from the U.S.,” said Reyes. “We Venezuelans are thankful, very thankful.”
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Associated Press videojournalist Juan Pablo Arraez contributed to this report from Maiquetía, Venezuela.
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Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.
Relief workers unload U.S. humanitarian aid for people affected by the earthquakes in La Guaira, Venezuela, Wednesday, July 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
People affected by the earthquakes carry U.S. humanitarian aid after receiving it in La Guaira, Venezuela, Wednesday, July 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
People affected by the earthquakes carry U.S. humanitarian aid after receiving it in La Guaira, Venezuela, Wednesday, July 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Lisa Galindez calls on other volunteers to help pack baby items at the Global Empowerment Mission Venezuela relief donation site Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in Doral, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
