Tesla wins as Texas requires state-backed charging stations to include its plug

Evgo

21/06/2023 02:21

(Adds administration comment in paragraphs 8-9)
    By Jarrett Renshaw and Hyunjoo Jin
       June 20 (Reuters) - Tesla  TSLA.O  scored a series of
victories for its charging technology on Tuesday, capped by
Texas saying it would require electric vehicle charging
companies to include both Tesla's standard as well as the
nationally recognized CCS if they want to be part of a state
program to electrify highways using federal dollars.
    Earlier in the day, Reuters was first to report both that
electric pickup truck maker Rivian was backing Tesla and that
charger maker BTC Power would support the standard. Those
announcements follow decisions by GM  GM.N  and Ford  F.N  to
add Tesla charging technology, shunning efforts by the Biden
administration to make the Combined Charging System (CCS) the
dominant charging standard in the United States.
    Texas - home to Tesla's headquarters and a new car factory
complex - is the first state that will mandate Tesla's charging
technology, giving a boost to CEO Elon Musk's hope of making it
the national charging standard.
    "The decision by Ford, GM, and now Rivian to adopt NACS
changed requirements for Phase 1" of the rollout, the Texas
Department of Transportation said in an email to Reuters on
Tuesday, adding that it would require direct current fast
chargers to have one CCS and one North American Charging
Standard (NACS) connector.
    Texas's decision will put a ton of pressure on other states
to adopt Tesla's NACS, said Lew Cox, director of business
development at MD7, which helps companies deploy chargers. 
    "It’ll effectively make an NACS the new charging standard,"
Cox said.
    The U.S. Department of Transportation earlier this year said
that charging companies must provide the CCS to be eligible for
up to $7.5 billion in federal funding to build new, high-speed
chargers on 7,500 miles (12,070 km) of the nation's busiest
highways.
    The Federal Highway Administration on Tuesday acknowledged
the industry was rapidly evolving.
    The growth of the nation's EV industry is a sign that public
investments are paying dividends, but the policy is always under
review, said a Federal Highway Administration spokesperson.
    "Our technical experts are having active conversations with
automakers, charger manufacturers, and standards setting bodies
to ensure federal investment continues to support a reliable,
convenient, and user-friendly charging experience for all
drivers," the spokesperson said. 
    The federal dollars are flowing through the states, which
are empowered to tailor their own guidelines as long as they
meet minimum federal standards. States are expected to award the
first round of funding through the remainder of the year. 
    Since the Ford and GM announcements, top U.S. charging
companies like ChargePoint and EVgo  EVGO.O  said they would
look to add the same standard to their U.S. chargers. 
    Others states like California, Iowa and Michigan are
reviewing the shifting charging market.
    And at least one other state is considering giving
applicants bonus points on applications if they include the
Tesla charging ports. 
    Tesla shares rose 1.2% in extended trade, after closing up
5.3% on Tuesday.
    Tesla said in the U.S. there are approximately 2,000
Supercharger locations and more than 21,000 Supercharger stalls,
which represents approximately 60% of the fast-charging plugs
operational in the country.

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EV maker Rivian to adopt Tesla's charging standard   
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EXCLUSIVE-Tesla standard: BTC Power joins move to add to EV
chargers     urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N38C2K6
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 (Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw in Philadelphia and Hyunjoo Jin
in San Francisco; Additional reporting by Abhirup Roy in San
Francisco; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Sonali Paul)
 ((jarrett.renshaw@thomsonreuters.com; (646) 223-6193))