Tesla has its own connector, which means automakers would have to provide or sell an adapter to owners of its EVs to access the Supercharger network
Tesla’s Chief Executive Elon Musk said that the electric vehicle giant is looking to open its network of superchargers to other electric vehicles later this year.
While other carmakers have formed alliances or invested in startups for EV charging networks as they rush new electric vehicle entrants to the market, Tesla’s fast-charging network, with over 25,000 superchargers globally, has given it a competitive edge.
“We’re making our Supercharger network open to other EVs later this year,” Musk said in a tweet, adding that over time Tesla’s charging network will be opened to other electric vehicles in all countries. Tesla Superchargers are located in North America, Asia and Europe as well as Middle Eastern countries UAE and Israel.
Musk has talked about either sharing the technology behind his Tesla Superchargers or opening them up for use to other EVs for years now, as per a report by TechCrunch.
Musk said in 2014 he’d be willing to open up the designs in order to build a standard that can be used interchangeably across the industry. This would allow competing electric car models to charge up at the Supercharger network.
Musk later said in 2018, “They would just need to pay the share of the cost proportionate to their vehicle usage. And they would need to be able to accept our charge rate or at least — and our connector, at least have an adaptor to our connector.”
Tesla has its own connector, which means automakers would have to provide or sell an adapter to owners of its EVs to access the Supercharger network. Tesla uses the CCS direct current connector in Europe, making this the most likely region for Tesla to open up first.
