Texas' plan to mandate the inclusion of Tesla's North American Charging Standard (NACS) alongside rival Combined Charging Standard (CCS) technology in charging stations across the state is seeing pushback from a group of EV charger makers and operators.
According to a document seen by Reuters and a source familiar with the matter, five electric vehicle charging companies have written to the Texas Transportation Commission's chairman, demanding more time to re-engineer and test Tesla's connectors.
The companies, which include operators ChargePoint Holdings and FLO, and manufacturers ABB, FreeWire, and EVBox, said the plan is "premature" and that it "risks the successful deployment" of the first phase of federal funds being rolled out.
"Time is needed to properly standardize, test, and certify the safety and interoperability of Tesla connectors across the industry," the companies said in the letter. Interestingly, both ChargePoint and FLO recently announced the availability of Tesla NACS at their charging stations.
Charging companies argued that they would have to re-work several aspects of NACS connectors, including extending the cable length and ensuring adequate temperature ranges, as well as get certifications for specific parts. They also highlighted the need for a strong supply chain of NACS cables and connectors that comply with the requirements.
Gallery: Tesla Supercharger
An unnamed source directly aware of the matter told Reuters that some of these organizations are also planning to reach out to the federal government with the issue soon.
Texas said on June 21 it would require charging companies to include both Tesla's North American Charging Standard (NACS) and the nationally recognized rival Combined Charging Standard (CCS) technology to be eligible for a state program to electrify highways using federal dollars.
Washington announced a similar decision, and standard organization SAE International said it aimed to make an industry standard configuration of Tesla's charging connector in six months or less.
Tesla's NACS charging technology has made the headlines in recent weeks after Ford Motor Company said it would adopt it for its electric vehicles. General Motors, Rivian Automotive and several other auto and charging companies followed suit, fearing the loss of customers if they offered only CCS.
Tesla's Superchargers make up about 60 percent of the total number of fast chargers in the United States, according to the US Department of Energy, and the deals will allow non-Tesla users to use the EV maker's charging network.
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Source: Reuters