Ford and Tesla Strike Landmark Deal for Access to Tesla Superchargers in North America by 2024
On May 25, Ford Motor Co announced a groundbreaking agreement with Tesla Inc to enable Ford electric vehicle owners to utilize over 12,000 Tesla Superchargers across North America starting in early 2024. This collaboration positions Ford as the first major automaker to adopt Tesla’s proprietary charging standard, granting them access to the largest network of high-speed Superchargers in the United States.
According to industry analysts, the availability of charging stations has been identified as a significant obstacle hindering the widespread acceptance of electric vehicles. Last November, Tesla made headlines when it announced plans to open its charging design to other automakers and charging network operators.
Under this partnership, Ford electric vehicles equipped with the Combined Charging System (CCS) port will be able to connect to Tesla’s V3 Superchargers using a Tesla-developed adapter. Starting in 2025, Ford will integrate Tesla’s charging standard into its future EVs, eliminating the need for an adapter and allowing direct access to Tesla Superchargers.
During an online Twitter Spaces conversation between Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Ford CEO Jim Farley, Musk emphasized the desire to transform Tesla’s supercharger network into a supportive ecosystem for electrification and sustainable transportation. Farley admired the reliability, routing software, and user-friendly connector of Tesla Superchargers, likening Tesla’s impact to a high-speed Shinkansen train.
Tesla currently boasts 17,711 Superchargers, accounting for approximately 60% of the total fast chargers in the United States. Farley announced this partnership during the Twitter Spaces conversation hosted on the platform owned by Musk.
This event followed a previous day’s incident where Twitter experienced repeated crashes during a highly anticipated live audio chat between Musk and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. This hindered Musk’s promotional efforts for the social media firm he acquired for $44 billion in the previous year. In contrast, the Musk-Farley Twitter Spaces conversation proceeded smoothly without technical glitches and lasted approximately 30 minutes.
Earlier in the day, at a Morgan Stanley forum, Farley expressed the need for collaboration among auto companies on the infrastructure front, which he considered unconventional. He also criticized the industry’s lack of agreement on charging network connectors, deeming it “totally ridiculous.”
In a tweet earlier this month, Musk commended Ford’s overall strategy with electric vehicles and defended the company against losses incurred in its EV business. Farley reciprocated the sentiment by stating that Ford should proactively initiate partnerships with innovative companies like Tesla, Nio Inc, and BYD, highlighting the willingness to collaborate in unconventional ways despite being competitors.
Tesla has already begun incorporating the rival CCS standard at some of its charging stations in the United States, aligning with the Biden administration’s objective of expanding charging networks by providing substantial subsidies.
