Detroit — The second-largest electric vehicle fast-charging network in the US says it will add Tesla’s connector to its charging stations, another step toward adopting Tesla’s plug as an industry standard.
Electrify America, with 800 direct-current fast-charging stations and more than 3,600 plugs nationwide, said Thursday it will work to add Tesla’s connector to existing and future chargers by 2025.
The Volkswagen subsidiary, formed as part of a settlement of the company’s diesel emissions-cheating scandal, is second only to Tesla in the number of fast-charging plugs in the US.
“We look forward to continuing to support industrywide standards that enhance vehicle interoperability and streamline public charging,” Robert Barrosa, CEO of Electrify America, said in a statement.
The company will also have Combined Charging System or CCS connectors at its stations. Currently most electric vehicle models in the US use the CCS connector.
But Ford, General Motors, Rivian and Volvo have said they will join Tesla’s larger Supercharger network and adopt its North American charging standard connector in new versions of their electric vehicles. Other companies such as Stellantis and Hyundai are considering joining Tesla’s network.
In addition, ChargePoint, which has the most charging stations of any US network, said it will begin offering the Tesla connector for use by charging site hosts later this year. However, most of its network is made up of slower “Level 2” chargers. Others, such as Blink Charging, have also announced plans to add the Tesla connector.
In addition, a major US automotive industry organization said this week that it would set performance standards for Tesla’s electric vehicle charging cords, taking another step toward using Tesla plugs on all EVs.
Tuesday’s move by SAE International, formerly the Society of Automotive Engineers, is another big step toward the Tesla charger. This comes even though the CCS connector was designed under the standards developed by SAE.
Tesla’s Superchargers are distinguished by other automakers because it has more direct current fast-charging plugs than any other network in the US, and its stations are in prime locations along freeway travel corridors.
GM, Ford, Rivian and Volvo owners will have access to more than 12,000 Tesla Supercharger plugs. According to the Department of Energy, Tesla has 1,797 Supercharger stations and more than 19,000 plugs in the US.
Since the stations are direct current fast-chargers, they can charge EVs relatively quickly while people travel.
The Department of Energy says there are about 54,000 public charging stations nationwide with more than 136,000 plugs. While most are slow Level 2 chargers, the network of DC fast chargers is growing.
Still, industry analysts say the pace is growing for Tesla’s switch to the connector to become the standard in the US, although vehicles will need to be able to use both connectors for some time.
GM and Ford say they are not making any payment to Tesla for access to the network.
