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How does a janitorial service from Middletown, Ohio evolve into one of the nation’s largest independent fuel distributors?
It is only through a tenacious entrepreneurial spirit and a free and fair marketplace where providing the best goods and services is rewarded.
That is my family’s story.
My father, Steve Hightower, grew our cleaning service from a humble start to a thriving business, sold it and subsequently developed Hightowers Petroleum Co., a wholesale distributor of liquid motor fuels, delivering fuel in every state in the continental United States.
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Despite our success, we remain ever conscious of the changing marketplace. The acceptance of alternative energy sources continues to increase and Hightowers continues to innovate and adapt to our customers’ preferences. We have seen a slow, but steady rise in demand for electric vehicle (EV) charging, and a couple of years ago we positioned ourselves to be able to meet that emerging demand.
While the retail fuel market is one of the most competitive and open marketplaces in the country, America’s EV charging marketplace is in danger of being dominated by the electric utilities industry that, in many cases, is subsidized by ratepayers.
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You may think this could never happen in Ohio, where the majority of our lawmakers are staunch supporters of the free market. However, the first attempt to take over this marketplace was made last year.
An Ohio Senate bill would have permitted electric utilities to charge ratepayers for “prudently incurred costs” in electrifying the state’s transportation network.
These so-called “prudent costs” would have included EV charging stations themselves, not just the infrastructure improvements necessary to deliver more power. Fortunately, the bill died before it was able to hinder private investment in Ohio’s EV charging marketplace or force customers to pay for a service that some will never use.
It is time for Ohio lawmakers to nip this effort in the bud. EV technology standards should be equally applied throughout the state, allowing retailers and electric utilities to compete on the same playing field.
Lawmakers should support proposals which incentivize private investment, allowing the marketplace to grow naturally, with businesses taking on the risk as well as the reward.
We didn’t get thousands of fueling stations across Ohio through social engineering or government subsidies, and we shouldn’t use such tactics to create an EV charging network. Instead, let’s allow competition, innovation, and the free market to thrive.
Stephen Hightower is president and chief operating officer of Hightowers Petroleum Company in Middletown, Ohio.
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