With more and more automakers signing up to access Tesla’s electric-vehicle charging infrastructure across the United States, the Elon Musk-led company’s superchargers are moving closer to becoming the industry standard. The move comes a few weeks after GM and Ford announced that their EVs could use the company’s North American Charging Standard (NACS) plug at Tesla’s vast charging station network, which already boasts 12,000 chargers.
While several other automakers, including BMW, MB, Nissan, Renault, and Volvo, have already made similar announcements, the move by GM and Ford is a significant milestone in making NACS the industry standard. “This is a big deal,” said Mike Austin, an analyst at Guidehouse Insights. “If it gets pushed through, other EV makers will have no choice but to do the same.”
By making its connector the new standard, Tesla hopes to ensure that all EVs can charge at its stations using its own cord and connector. That will allow it to generate more revenue from its charging network and ensure that all EVs can charge as quickly as possible when needed.
Until now, most EVs have used the rival Combined Charging System (CCS) plug, widely accepted in Europe but slow to catch on in the U.S. To qualify for federal funds under a program meant to electrify highways, the Biden administration requires that companies offer CCS technology at least as a minimum. However, individual states can add their requirements to the federal program. And a few, like Texas, Kentucky, and Washington state, have considered requiring companies to include Tesla’s plug in their charging stations to be eligible for the money.
The move by GM and Ford may prompt more state governments to follow suit. And if the other automakers follow the lead of GM and Ford, the NACS connector could become the industry standard within a few years.
In 2023, Honda will introduce its EVs with the NACS plug, and the company says it will also sell an adapter to enable owners of its current EVs — such as the Honda Clarity and I-Pace — to charge at Tesla’s Superchargers. Jaguar also plans to adopt the NACS plug in its upcoming EVs and will also supply I-Pace owners with an adapter starting next year, allowing them to use the Supercharger network.
The NACS move could be a watershed moment for Tesla, which is not only trying to expand its charging network but also trying to convince the rest of the industry that it doesn’t need to invest in building its EVs and can rely on the company’s software to connect them to charge and receive over-the-air improvements and other upgrades. Despite Tesla’s dominance of the electric vehicle market, it has faced competition from Chinese EV makers that have been slashing prices and production cuts to grab market share.