Gear up for a Charged-up Future! Electric vehicles (EVs) are taking the world by storm, and Tesla has been a major force in this revolution. But is Tesla the only game in town? Not anymore! Several powerful players are entering the scene, and the competition is about to get even more exciting. Let's explore how these new contenders might reshape the future of electric mobility.
As per the news on General Motors, it shows that BMW, General Motors, Toyota, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis are forming a joint venture to launch a public charging network in North America, aiming to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles.
On Wednesday, July 26, the above seven major automakers announced that they are joining forces to build an electric charging network across the United States. The plan includes at least 30,000 ev charger that can serve all brands of electric vehicles.
These seven companies account for about half of the vehicles sales in the United States, but in the electric vehicles market, Tesla is the only top one. In 2022, Tesla accounts for 50% of the market share of electric vehicles (including plug-in hybrids) in the United States, which is more than the bottom 17 combined.
Ambitious of the Seven Automakers Unite
The cooperation plan of the seven companies is to install at least 30,000 fast ev chargers by 2030, and the first batch of commercial ev chargers will be opened in the United States in the summer of 2024. They plan to use funding from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI), as well as other private and public funds from state and federal sources, to build the charging network.
In the North American EVSE market, Tesla has always insisted on building its own charging piles. It has more than 45,000 ev charger worldwide and about 17,000 charging piles in the United States.
In addition to Tesla, the other major fast ev charger operator in North America is Electrify America, which has built more than 3,600 new charging piles in five years. Electrify America is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Volkswagen Group America.
Currently, there are two connector standards in the US ev charger market. One is Tesla wall connector previously proprietary North American Charging Standard (NACS Charger); the other is the Combined Charging System (CCS). In North America, almost all non-Tesla electric vehicle charging stations use CCS (specifically CCS Type 1 or CCS1). This is also a standard certified by the Society of Automotive Engineers.
In May of this year, Ford announced that it would use Tesla's NACS connector on its future vehicles. General Motors also announced that it would follow Ford's lead and adopt the NACS standard. Ford, Tesla and General Motors together account for nearly three-quarters which is about 72% of the U.S. electric vehicle market.
The newly established joint venture plans to make ev chargers compatible with both CCS and NACS standards. This means that all North American electric vehicles can be charged at the new company's EVCS.
In February 2023, the U.S. government released the latest progress on ev charger standards. The U.S. federal government has allocated $7.5 billion to support the construction of ev charger networks. As long as companies use ev charger made in the United States and adopt CCS standards, they can receive subsidies.
According to the latest data, the United States has more than 130,000 public ev chargers. The joint venture plan of the seven companies will undoubtedly push them to the position of the largest ev charging company in the United States.
Hot market
The U.S government is very enthusiastic about promoting the electrification transformation of the automobile industry. In August 2021, U.S. President Biden signed an executive order, planning that by 2030, zero-emission vehicles (including pure electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid vehicles, and fuel cell vehicles) will account for 50% of new passenger car and light truck sales in the United States.
In April this year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed a more ambitious plan that would see electric vehicles account for 60% of U.S. new car sales by 2030 and 67% by 2032. This goal has brought great enthusiasm to the US ev charger market.
In 2022, a total of 990,000 electric vehicles were sold in the United States, an increase of 50% from 2021, accounting for 9.3% of the global total. With annual sales of nearly one million vehicles in 2022, the United States has returned to second place in the global ranking of electric vehicle sales countries after being briefly surpassed by Germany in 2020 and 2021.
According to statistics from market research company Motor Intelligence, Tesla still dominates the U.S. electric vehicle market, accounting for 65% of total sales in this field last year, but this is lower than 72% in 2021, showing that from traditional car giants and other new electric vehicle brands competition is more intense.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy's Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDA), among the 130,000 ev charger in the United States, more than 100,000 are for level 1 and level 2 EV charger, and the demand for level 3 ev charger is very strong.
In order to match the development of electric vehicles, the U.S. government and enterprises have taken a series of measures. According to the February U.S. government announcement, these measures include but are not limited to the followings:
Collaboration Paves the Way
The electric vehicle (EV) revolution is gaining momentum, and with the entry of these seven major automakers, the landscape is set for a thrilling race. While Tesla has been a driving force, with their well-established Supercharger network and Tesla destination charger stations, this collaboration signifies a significant shift towards a more open and collaborative future for EVs.
The planned 30,000-strong charging network, compatible with both CCS and NACS standards, promises to address a major barrier to EV adoption: charging infrastructure. This not only benefits consumers by providing greater accessibility and convenience beyond Tesla destination chargers, but also paves the way for a wider variety of EVs to compete on a level playing field.
This collaborative effort, coupled with government incentives and ambitious sales targets, indicates a strong commitment to accelerating the transition to electric mobility in North America. With increased competition and innovation, consumers can expect not only a wider range of EVs to choose from, but also potentially lower prices and faster charging technologies. The future of electric vehicles is certainly charged-up, and this collaboration is a giant leap forward in making EVs a viable and accessible option for everyone, reducing reliance on proprietary charging networks like Tesla destination chargers.