Asia Tech Wire (July 18) -- Mercedes-Benz and Starbucks announced Wednesday that they are partnering to install electric vehicle chargers at more than 100 Starbucks stores across the U.S.

The parties have not yet disclosed the cost of the program.

Mercedes-Benz and Starbucks also plan to focus on markets including urban areas, charging deserts and key travel corridors.

The German automaker said the company has invested $1 billion in its charging network and has built a dozen charging stations in the southern U.S. since the first one opened last November.

Mercedes-Benz plans to expand the operation to nearly half of the U.S. states in the next 12 to 18 months.

Early last year, Mercedes-Benz announced a plan to roll out a global high-power charging network across North America, Europe, China and other major markets.