Why is Tesla opening up it’s charging Network to other EV manufacturers? We Love Tesla Investigates:
On the 18th of May, Tesla announced it was opening up its proprietary supercharger network immediately to non-Tesla EVs in the UK.
The supercharger network consists of a collection of superchargers designed for incredible fast charging-typically allowing you to recharge your electric car battery in less than 60 minutes.
Tesla operates two types of superchargers in the UK-V2 units with 150KW and V3 units with a power output of 250KW.
The supercharger network is owned and operated by Tesla itself, while third parties are allowed to operate other charging networks.
This announcement by Tesla gives users of non-Tesla electric vehicles (EVs) access to their supercharger network in the UK and in other countries like Belgium, Sweden, and Austria where Tesla’s supercharger network was opened up.
There’s been previous successful trials in the Netherlands, France, Germany, and Norway before this announcement.
Tesla has over 650 chargers and 98 charging sites in the UK, but only 15 stations with 158 individual superchargers took part in the pilot opening up in the UK. That’s 25% of the total capacity.
The sites are;
- Aviemore
- Adderstone
- Aberystwyth
- Banbury
- Birmingham St Andrews
- Cardiff
- Dundee
- Flint Mountain
- Folkestone Eurotunnel
- Grays
- Manchester Trafford Centre
- Wokingham
- Thetford
- Trumpington
- UXbridge
Tesla drivers will continue to access these stations like before with the brand monitoring congestion and customer experiences.
And Non-Tesla drivers too can now access it. They’ll need to have the Tesla app on their smartphone to access the superchargers. After downloading the app, they create a Tesla account and select “Charge Your Non-Tesla”, then find a supercharger site.
They then add a payment method, plug-in their car, select a stall and tap “Start Charging”. When they’re done, they select “Stop Charging” to end the charging session.
The charging prices vary with location, but non-Tesla owners will pay more than Tesla owners.
Non-Tesla owners can access at an average price of £0.60 per KWh. And there’s also an option to pay a £10.99 membership fee to access lower charging prices of around £0.50 per KWh.
In contrast, Tesla owners pay an average of £0.26 per KWh .
The supercharging network is for non-Tesla EVs compatible with Supercharger Type 2 CCS connector. Even if the supercharger has two cables, non-Tesla owners can only use the CCS connector.
Why is Tesla Opening Up It Supercharging Network To Non-Tesla Owners
According to Tesla, it’s opening up its supercharger network to non-Tesla owners to accelerate the transitioning of the world to sustainable energy.
Because they believe providing access to an extensive, convenient, and reliable fast-charging network will encourage more people to adopt EVs on a large-scale.
And getting more customers to use their supercharger network in this pilot opening will help them learn and iterate quickly, so they can eventually open their supercharging network to all EVs worldwide.