Tesla charging

Part of Tesla’s vast charging network in the United States will soon be open to electric vehicles from other brands, the White House announced Wednesday Tesla charging.

The move is in response to the $7.5 billion federal investment in charging infrastructure that is part of the bipartisan infrastructure bill passed in 2021, the rules of which were detailed Wednesday.

Under the plan, at least 3,500 of Tesla’s high-speed Supercharger chargers located along major highways and 4,000 of its slower Destination chargers in places like hotels and restaurants, new or existing, will have the combined charging standard (CCS) connector used by most automakers by the end of 2024, in addition to Tesla’s existing proprietary contact.

Anyone using either charger will be able to complete the charging and payment process through Tesla’s app or website.

Tesla has 17,711 Superchargers, which is about 60% of the total fast chargers in the US. The company also has about 10,000 of the Destination chargers.

There is also funding for new chargers, although the regulations for this require final assembly and all manufacturing processes for any iron or steel charger enclosures or casings to be done in the US. By July 2024 at least 55% of the cost of all components will also need to be domestically produced.

One of the goals of the infrastructure bill is to get the number of EV chargers in the US to 500,000 by 2030, up from about 130,000 today Tesla charging.

Tesla has previously launched a pilot program in Europe that gives other electric cars access to its Supercharger sites. Launched in the Netherlands at the end of 2021 for vehicles with CCS connectors and has since been extended to other countries. It’s worth noting that Tesla began considering CCS compatibility for its European network back in 2018, but couldn’t do the same in the US because CCS hadn’t been launched when it started building Supercharger sites here.

Tesla is not the only company reacting to the government’s charging initiative. Hertz has teamed up with oil giant BP to install chargers at its car rental locations. General Motors plans to install chargers at its dealerships, as well as a coast-to-coast network of 2,000 fast chargers at Pilot and Flying J travel centers along popular highways. Electrify America has a similar plan to install fast chargers along highways. Ford has announced plans to build chargers at its dealerships, and Mercedes-Benz and Volvo have also announced plans to build chargers at locations across the country Tesla charging.

Importantly, the regulations require consistent plug types and charging speeds to be available at charging points. They also require a single identification method that works across all chargers, meaning drivers don’t need the hassle of having to use multiple apps and accounts to charge.