ChargePoint’s EV network rolls out support for Tesla’s NACS connector
It beats rival Electrify America, which will support NACS connectors ‘by 2025.’
EV charging infrastructure company ChargePoint announced Thursday that it’s rolling out support for Tesla’s North American Charging Standard (NACS) connector. In a move announced earlier this year, the network will support AC and DC charging for the formerly proprietary, soon-to-be-ubiquitous Tesla plug. Rival Electrify America announced a similar change in June, but it set a more modest deadline of 2025 to make the transition.
Support begins rolling out today with “much of the lineup” expected to deliver during the next month. Cable upgrade kits for the company’s existing DC fast chargers will be delivered to customers in November, “offering Tesla drivers a public fast charging alternative for the first time,” the company wrote in a press release Thursday.
The ChargePoint app now includes an NACS selection filter to help find a compatible station on your route. “With many car manufacturers recently adopting the NACS standard for upcoming models, ChargePoint now offers every necessary cable solution to charge an EV in North America and Europe,” the company wrote. ChargePoint has over 48,000 EV charging stations globally.
ChargePoint will provide a native DC connector and AC “solutions” compatible with Tesla vehicles. It will also continue supporting the Combined Charging System (CCS-1) standard. “The lineup offers AC solutions as well, negating the need for a cumbersome adapter to charge,” the company wrote. In addition, ChargePoint begins shipping cables for its Level 2 Home Flex charging system this month. It’s the first publicly available option offering NACS DC fast-charging speeds for non-Tesla EVs.
“With more than 35 million historical ChargePoint sessions initiated by Tesla vehicles, we saw the need to offer native connector solutions for this large portion of the EV market,” Pasquale Romano, CEO of ChargePoint, wrote in a press release. “Our support for both installed and new products opens up ChargePoint DC chargers to millions of drivers who have not yet had a fast charging alternative to the Tesla ecosystem, and makes their AC charging experience more convenient.”
The auto industry has lined up behind NACS in recent months. Ford, GM / Rivian, Volvo, Polestar, Mercedes, Honda, Jaguar, BMW and Hyundai have announced plans to adopt the standard in upcoming vehicles. Toyota and Volkswagen stand as two of the few remaining holdouts.
