Tesla to open up US charging network to other electric vehicles

Tesla will make part of its charging network available to other makes of electric vehicles for the first time, the White House announced, in an effort to persuade Americans that long road trips can be electrified.

Tesla’s charging network, the largest in the US, has been available to Tesla drivers only, but the company will allow any EV to use at least 7,500 chargers in its Supercharger and Destination network by the end of 2024, the Biden administration announced on Wednesday.

The open chargers will be located throughout the US, in urban and rural locales, and will include 3,500 new chargers along highways.

According to new White House rules released on Wednesday, any companies hoping to receive subsidies from a $7.5bn pot of federal dollars will need to adopt the US dominant standard for charging connectors, known as the combined charging system.

“These new standards will make it so you can charge your EV along major highways as easily as you can fill up your car with gas, no matter what kind of car you drive, or what state you’re in,” said Mitch Landrieu, White House infrastructure co-ordinator.

The rules will also require new chargers to be built in the US, with 55 per cent of the components, as measured by cost, being manufactured domestically by 2024.

Expanding the country’s EV charging network has been a key part of the Biden administration’s push for half of all US vehicle sales to be electric by 2030.

As part of the Inflation Reduction Act, consumers are eligible for substantial tax credits when they buy an electric car, with up to $7,500 available for some models.

The vehicles must be made in the US to qualify for the full amount, and the critical minerals sourced for the batteries should be extracted or processed in a country the US has a free trade agreement with.

The Biden administration is aiming to have 500,000 chargers across the country by 2030. The White House said there were currently 3mn EVs on US roads and more than 130,000 public chargers nationwide.

The White House announced further deals with other EV charging makers, including commitments from BP to invest $1bn in charging in the US by 2030, and a new partnership from Pilot Company, General Motors and EVgo to build a coast-to-coast network of 2,000 high power 350kW fast chargers.

Tesla will also more than double its overall national charging network, the White House said.