Tesla CEO Elon Musk has never hidden his intention to make Tesla’s charging network access to other vehicles. According to the Engadget media, this seems to be clarifying and some vehicles may have access to it by the end of 2021.
Tesla supercharging stations are accessible to all
Owners of electric vehicles (other than Tesla) such as Citroën, Skoda, Ford, Volkswagen, Lexus, and many others should soon have access to the charging network normally reserved for Tesla. It was through his Twitter account, which is regularly updated, that Tesla CEO Elon Musk indicated that the company would open its charging network to other electric vehicles later this year. The provision of the Tesla company’s charging network to other brands has long been mentioned by the businessman, mentioning that, last year, other brands had sought access to Tesla’s charging stations.
Tesla’s supercharger stations have charging speeds of up to 250 kW. Supercharger stations continued to be deployed around the world over time. Today, over 2,500 stations with over 25,000 superchargers are available. However, opening up this network to other brands is not the easiest thing to do. Indeed, Tesla uses specific connectors in North America. It is, therefore, necessary to ensure that the stations will work with all brands as well as compatibility between secure vehicle software and superchargers. Only in Europe should it be easier since the automaker already uses standard CCS connectors.
Last June, the Electrek media indicated that Tesla was in contact with the Norwegian authorities to deploy charging stations there which will be available even for “non-Tesla” vehicles from the third quarter of 2022. The German minister is also said to come to the inquiries to ensure that existing infrastructure such as superchargers was “also open to other manufacturers”.
Questions remain despite Tesla’s goodwill
In addition, we still do not know how to open Tesla stations to other manufacturers. Tesla could ask for financial participation from various manufacturers to further expand its network. In addition, it is not known whether an agreement will have to be reached with Tesla to be able to access its stations, or whether they will be open to everyone without restrictions. The pricing option could also be considered by Tesla.
As of yet, Elon Musk has not given more details. However, we now know that Tesla’s supercharger stations will be open to other electric vehicles at the end of the year. This is very good news for the owners of these vehicles who can sometimes have trouble finding charging stations. This is also good news for the entire transition to electric vehicles, as it may encourage more manufacturers to take it up a notch.
