Tesla CEO Elon Musk has, for years, talked about opening up his company\u2019s vast Supercharger network to other electric vehicles. But earlier this month, Musk tweeted that Tesla plans to do this \u201clater this year,\u201d and this week, he finally offered some details about how it might work. <\/p>\n
It will be \u201creal simple,\u201d Musk claimed on an investor call Monday. Owners of other EVs will be able to charge at a Supercharger station by using the Tesla app \u2014 which, right now, is geared toward people who\u2019ve purchased the company\u2019s products. That\u2019s about all Tesla will have to do to make this possible in Europe and China, where there are standardized charging cable connectors, Musk said. (Tesla has already committed to opening up the network in Norway.)<\/p>\n
But Tesla has a proprietary connector in North America, so non-Tesla vehicles here will need an adapter. That could be up to the other automakers to make; Musk has previously said that Tesla has held talks with other automakers about sharing costs in order to open up the Supercharger network, and in 2018, he said competitors would have to be \u201cable to accept our charge rate and our connector, at least have an adapter to our connector.\u201d Tesla may still make its own, as Musk said he anticipates making them available at Supercharger stations as long as \u201cpeople don\u2019t sort of steal them or something.\u201d (Tesla energy lead Drew Baglino assured his boss on the call that his team \u201chas a good solution for that.\u201d) <\/p>\n
\nWe created our own connector, as there was no standard back then & Tesla was only maker of long range electric cars. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s one fairly slim connector for both low & high power charging. <\/p>\n
That said, we\u2019re making our Supercharger network open to other EVs later this year.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 20, 2021\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
This adapter would likely have to be certified (something typically done by third parties like UL) and some basic software written to handle the \u201chandshake\u201d that happens between a car and the charger before electrons start flowing. <\/p>\n
If Tesla allows other electric vehicles to charge on the Supercharger network, it could be a big boost for the nascent \u2014 but growing \u2014 EV market. The company has already built out almost 3,000 stations and nearly 27,000 connectors worldwide, which can charge at faster rates than most other networks. <\/p>\n
Plenty of already-open charging networks like EVgo, ChargePoint, and Blink have recently gone public and plan to use much of that fresh funding to expand their networks. But unlocking the Supercharger network to owners of other EVs could more immediately help alleviate the twin headaches of finding available (and working) chargers and time spent charging.<\/p>\n
It could be a financial boon for Tesla, too, as Baglino said on an investor call Monday. \u201cIncreasing the utilization of the network actually reduces our costs, which allows us to lower charging prices for all customers, makes the network more profitable, allows us to grow the network faster. That\u2019s a good thing there,\u201d he said. Something that went unsaid: the possibility that opening up the network could make Tesla\u2019s superchargers more appealing to government subsidy programs. (President Biden has said he wants to build 500,000 charging stations as part of a $15 billion investment in the technology.)<\/p>\n
There is at least one big potential hangup for this plan, though: capacity \u2014 not the energy kind, but the how-crowded-will-Superchargers-get kind. <\/p>\n
As Tesla\u2019s vehicles become more popular, Supercharger stations in some big cities have gotten crowded. In some respect, that\u2019s good for Tesla \u2014 hanging out at Superchargers while you charge is a great way to meet other potentially like-minded Tesla owners, which, in turn, helps grow the company\u2019s legion of devotees. But waiting in line only to then wait again while you charge is a drag, and things will only get more crowded if Tesla opens up the Supercharger network to other EVs. <\/p>\n
To solve this, Musk said Tesla may play with dynamic pricing. For instance, the company could jack up prices if your EV charges at a slower rate than a Tesla because, as Musk said Monday, the \u201cbiggest constraint at Superchargers is time.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a lot of work for the Supercharger team\u201d<\/q><\/aside>\nThe bigger blocker, Musk said, is that Tesla is making cars at a faster rate than it\u2019s building new Supercharger stations. Opening the network is \u201conly useful to the public if we\u2019re able to [build Superchargers] faster than Tesla vehicle output,\u201d he said. \u201cSo this is a lot of work for the Supercharger team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Access to a large, exclusive network of fast charging stations has long been one of the selling points of buying a Tesla, which could make this transition a tricky one, according to Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars.com. \u201cElon will have to balance his desire to widen EV charging access \u2014 and increase Tesla\u2019s revenue \u2014 with keeping his owner body happy,\u201d Brauer said in an email to The Verge<\/em>. \u201cThat may be a bridge too far, even for Elon.\u201d<\/p>\n
But opening up the network could also be a powerful marketing tool for a company that famously doesn\u2019t spend money on traditional advertising, Autotrader <\/em>executive editor Brian Moody said via email.<\/p>\n
\u201cI bet it leads to more Tesla buyers long term.\u201d<\/q><\/aside>\n\u201cThe smart thing about this idea is that it gradually exposes motorists, especially those who are already interested in EVs, to the Tesla brand. I bet it leads to more Tesla buyers long term,\u201d Moody wrote.<\/p>\n
As much as an exclusive Supercharger network has been a selling point for Tesla, Musk maintained on Monday that he always hoped to open it up to other electric vehicles \u2014 and took a shot at another Silicon Valley giant in the process. \u201cOur goal is to support the advent of sustainable energy. It is not to create a walled garden and use that to bludgeon our competitors, which is sometimes used by some company,\u201d he said, before fake coughing and adding: \u201cApple<\/em>.\u201d <\/p>\n
It\u2019s something that those other charging networks have also anticipated. In a recent financial filing, EVgo admitted that Tesla opening up its Supercharger network \u201ccould further reduce demand for charging at our sites.\u201d<\/p>\n
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