As General Motors readies to roll out its new all-electric Chevrolet Volt, the company is trying to prepare the world for its arrival.

The company is installing hundreds of electric-car charging stations throughout Michigan and will help its independent dealers in key launch areas to install charging stations. Many of those charging stations will be solar powered, said Sharon Basel, a GM spokeswoman.

“Supporting the infrastructure that supports the growth of the electric vehicle is really important to its success,” Basel said.

GM has identified two places in the world that it believes will be the most important places for car charging stations.

“The first and probably the most important one, is the home,” Basel said.

People who want to drive electric cars will need to be able to charge them at home. Homeowners with their own garages should have no trouble finding a way to do it. But GM has been working with apartment and condominium communities to help them establish charging stations.

The second most important place for charging stations will be the workplace, Basel said.

GM has been talking to large employers around the country about installing stations. The company is also planning to lead by example, Basel said.

“We recognize that many of our employees will be driving the Volt,” she said.

GM will install over 500 electric car charging stations for those employees, according to a press release from the auto manufacturer.

Not all of those will be solar powered, but many will be, Basel said.

GM has contracted with SunLogic and Envision Solar to build the solar charging stations.

SunLogic uses a carport deign covered with photovoltaic solar panels, Basel said.

Envision uses a system that looks almost like an umbrella and follows the sun through the sky during the day so it’s always getting optimum sun, Basel said.

GM is no stranger to solar technology. Basel pointed out that the company’s main facility in Michigan is covered in solar panels, and its Spain facility boasts one of the largest solar arrays in the world.

“We’re a pretty big player in the industrial world as far as solar is concerned,” Basel said. “The Volt is an electric car. We’re trying to reduce fossil fuel reliance. It’s the whole point.”

Pictured: The 2011 Chevy Volt, courtesy of GM.