Tesla Finally Agrees to Open its Charging Network to All EVs in US

upstart writes:

Biden announced new rules today to standardize America's EV-charging experience:

Today, the Biden administration announced new standards for expanding the national electric vehicle (EV) charging network in order to encourage widespread EV adoption by providing a "predictable" user experience. All charging stations will soon be required to adopt the same connector types, payment methods, and data privacy assurances. These new standards have pushed Tesla, for the first time, to make part of its proprietary charging network compatible with non-Tesla EVs in the United States.

Joining other industry stakeholders in supporting Biden's goal to build 500,000 EV chargers nationwide by 2030, Tesla has pledged to make "at least 7,500 chargers available for all EVs by the end of 2024," Biden's announcement said. This will include 3,500 new and existing 250 kW "superchargers" along highway corridors and 4,000 slower "destination chargers" at hotels and restaurants in urban and rural areas.

[...] Opening its charging network to all EVs could position Tesla as the clear industry leader across America, analysts told Reuters, but adopting the CCS standard could also diminish some consumers' incentive to buy Teslas. Tesla drivers have enjoyed exclusive access to the nation's largest and fastest network of "superchargers," but soon any EV owner can enjoy that same benefit without buying a Tesla.

Despite this seeming risk to its EV sales, Tesla CEO Elon Musk seemed "very open" to helping Biden meet his ambitious EV charging goals, White House Infrastructure Coordinator Mitch Landrieu said at a press briefing today. With so much funding available to competitors, Tesla otherwise might have risked a rival creating a larger charging network, thus losing Tesla drivers' incentive of exclusivity either way.

Read more of this story at SoylentNews.