© Reuters. Newly installed car chargers at a Tesla Super charging station are shown in Carlsbad, California, U.S. September 14, 2018. REUTERS/Mike Blake
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By Abhirup Roy
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Electric vehicle maker Rivian said on Tuesday it will adopt Tesla’s charging standard (NASDAQ:), giving Rivian customers access to the largest U.S. charging network and giving momentum to Tesla’s bid to set the industry standard.
Rivian said its customers will be able to access 12,000 Tesla superchargers with adapters in the United States and Canada as early as spring 2024. The company, which has its own small network of fast chargers, will also create a standard Tesla-style charging port on its vehicles from 2025.
“We prefer the Tesla Connector, which is more compact, and also see an opportunity to leverage the charging infrastructure they’ve built,” Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe told Reuters in an interview. .
The decision, first reported by Reuters, is part of a string of victories for Tesla. On Tuesday alone, BTC Power said it would add Tesla’s standard to its electric chargers, Texas said it would require state-backed charging stations to include Tesla’s plug, and Hyundai Motor said that it would consider making its vehicles more compatible with Tesla’s standard.
Tesla has also struck recent deals with General Motors (NYSE:) and Ford. While other automakers have access to Tesla’s charging network, Tesla stands to benefit from selling electricity to a larger group of EV drivers.
Shares of Irvine, Calif.-based Rivian surged, ending up 5.5%. Shares of Tesla closed up 5.3%, taking gains since announcing the deal with Ford in late May to 49%.
Rivian, which makes the R1T pickup truck and R1S SUV, said it will continue to expand its own fast-charging network. In 2021, he presented plans for more than 3,500 charging stations.
Scaringe said Rivian’s network will also adopt standard Tesla outlets, opening up a significant revenue stream for Tesla owners using Rivian chargers. “The network will actually become cash flow positive pretty quickly,” he said.
Tesla’s superchargers make up about 60% of the total fast chargers available in the United States, according to the US Department of Energy.
While other electric car makers need access to reliable charging to allay customer fears of being stranded, most have steered clear of building grids because their installation and maintenance require substantial investments for still limited returns.
“That’s why I think you’re going to see more and more partnerships,” said Akshay Singh, partner at consultancy PwC Strategy&.
Tesla’s recent deals represent major steps forward in displacing a rival standard known as the Combined Charging System (CCS) that previously had the exclusive backing of President Joe Biden’s administration. The government is offering $7.5 billion in funding to accelerate the deployment of electric vehicle chargers in the United States.
Qualifying for some of that federal money had required Tesla to open up its network, and the automaker rebranded the technology as the North American Charging Standard (NACS).
“It’s great to see the industry coming together to embrace the North American charging standard,” Tesla’s senior director of charging infrastructure, Rebecca Tinucci, said in a statement.
Manufacturers and operators of CCS chargers such as ABB E-mobility North America, a unit of Swiss industrial company ABB, Tritium DCFC, EVgo and FreeWire have been rushing to announce the addition of NACS sockets to their charging stations since the announcements from Ford and GM.
Services and other revenue, which includes fees for using Tesla’s superchargers, accounted for just under 10% of Tesla’s revenue last quarter. The business does not break out alone in charging revenue.
