The White House just announced that Tesla’s Supercharger stations may now qualify for federal subsidies, but only if they’re compatible with the CCS standard that most automakers use. Tesla has been testing CCS plugs at some stations, letting non-Teslas charge up for the first time ever. Pretty huge news if you ask me!
Most global car manufacturers in the US use the CCS standard, including Volkswagen, Hyundai, and Kia. Tesla has been testing the CCS interface, allowing non-Tesla vehicles to use its Superchargers. However, the vast majority of Tesla’s charging stations in North America currently only support NACS.
Last week, the Biden administration said folks can get government money for proprietary charging adapters and plugs, as long as they work with CCS. That could make Tesla’s new CCS adapters eligible for the cash. Tesla’s tested putting in “Magic Dock” chargers with both its own plug and CCS at Superchargers, so those would for sure qualify.
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This is a big win for Tesla and EVs in general. With government help, Tesla could expand its charging network even faster, making electric cars more realistic for way more people. It’s great to see the feds recognize how useful Tesla’s huge, reliable charging network is.
Under the new Infrastructure Bill, the government’s putting $7.5 billion towards building a national EV charging network. Earlier, Ford and GM said they’d use Tesla’s plug, called the North American Charging Standard or NACS. That really shook up the charging industry, and now it looks like CCS could become the norm, at least with the government’s support.
A White House spokesperson, Robin Patterson, said the goal is making sure any car can charge at any public station. “Our goal is to ensure that every car can use every publicly funded charging station. More drivers can use more high-quality charging facilities, including Tesla’s Superchargers.”
Tesla has over 17,700 fast chargers in North America, way more than other networks. But right now, almost all only work with Tesla’s own NACS plug.
With Ford, GM (GM and Tesla team up Superchargers stations to end range anxiety once and for all?) and Tesla on board, over 60% of EVs in the US could eventually use Tesla’s charging network. How’s that for open access? The future of charging looks bright!