Competing automakers Ford (F) and Tesla (TSLA), may compete for electric vehicle (EV) market share, but are teaming up to make EV charging more affordable as the Biden administration’s push for an American-made EV solution takes shape.
Key things
- Ford and Tesla agree to cooperate on charging.
- Ford EV owners will have access to 12,000 Tesla chargers.
- The move follows the White House’s plan for a nationwide network of chargers.
What does this mean for Ford EV owners?
Current Ford EV owners will gain access to more than 12,000 Tesla Superchargers in the U.S. and Canada, Ford CEO Jim Farley and Tesla’s Elon Musk announced Thursday.
Models like the Ford F-150 Lightning, Mustang Mach-E and E-Transit equipped with a Combined Charging System (CCS) port will need a Tesla adapter to use the company’s V3 Superchargers.
The next-generation Ford EV would feature a Tesla-compatible charging connector, eliminating the need for an adapter, Ford said.
Counterintuitive, but not surprising
Farley said last month that he wants to overtake Tesla as the global leader in electric cars, while Tesla has shaken up the industry this year. series of price cuts aimed at protecting its market share.
But as counterintuitive as this EV charging partnership seems, it’s not entirely surprising.
In February, the White House said Tesla would open 7,500 its chargers to competing companies in exchange for subsidies.
The Biden administration is providing grants to build a “Made in America” network of 500,000 vehicle chargers across the United States. The bipartisan government bill earmarked $7.5 billion for electric vehicle charging infrastructure and wants the chargers in place by 2030.
Ford’s CEO discussed charging during a Morgan Stanley conference and suggested that automakers work together on infrastructure, CNBC reported.
“It seems absolutely ridiculous that we have an infrastructure problem and we can’t even agree on what plug to use,” Ford said.
A Plug In America survey in February cited a lack of sufficient or non-functioning charging stations as one of the key barriers to owning or maintaining an electric vehicle.
