Monitoring Desk
SAN FRANCISCO: Tesla Inc. will open part of its United States charging network to electric vehicles (EVs) made by rivals as part of a 7.5 billion dollar federal programme to expand the use of EVs and cut carbon emissions.
According to Reuters, the move would help turn Tesla into the universal “filling station” of the EV era and the risk eroding a competitive edge for vehicles made by the company, which has exclusive access to the biggest network of high-speed super-chargers in the United States.
By late 2024, Tesla could open 3,500 new and existing super-chargers along highway corridors to non-Tesla customers, the Biden administration said. It would offer 4,000 slower chargers at locations like hotels and restaurants.
Biden wrote on Twitter that the programme to open a “big part” of Tesla’s network to all drivers was the “big deal” and would “make the big difference.”
Tesla Chief Executive
In response, Tesla Chief Executive Musk said, “Thank you, Tesla is happy to support other EVs via our super-charger network.”
White House official said that at a briefing that Tesla would be eligible for a subsidy, including retrofitting its existing fleet, as long as its chargers allowed other vehicles with a federally backed charging standard called CCS to charge.
The administration said Tesla had not committed to adopting CCS as its standard but must comply with the requirements to qualify for federal funds.
Tesla has 17,711 Superchargers, accounting for about 60 percent of total United States (US) fast chargers, which can add hundreds of miles of driving range in an hour or less. There are also nearly 10,000 “destination” chargers with Tesla plugs that can recharge a vehicle overnight.
