July 7 (UPI) — German automaker Mercedes-Benz said Friday its operations in the North American market would tap into charging stations from Tesla to support its range of electric vehicles.
“To accelerate the shift to electric vehicles, we are dedicated to elevating the entire EV-experience for our customers — including fast, convenient and reliable charging solutions wherever their Mercedes-Benz takes them,” said Ola Kallenius, the board chairman at Mercedes.
Starting next year, owners of EVs in the Mercedes-Benz line will have access to more than 12,000 Tesla chargers.
Elsewhere, the German company said it was working to set up its own high-power charging hubs, with plans to have more than 2,500 stations set up in North America by the end of the decade.
“With the development of Mercedes-Benz’s new North American high-power charging network, we are ready to redefine the electric vehicle charging experience,” said Andrew Cornelia, the head of the company’s North American operations.
From sedans to wagons and SUVs, Mercedes-Benz boasts a broad line of electric vehicles. Its EQB SUV model has a base model suggested retail price of $52,750.
Mercedes joins a growing list of companies tapping into Tesla’s vast charging infrastructure across North America.
General Motors joined rival carmaker Ford in early June in partnering with Tesla for the charging of electric vehicles. The company will adopt Tesla’s connector, known as the North American Charging Standard (NACS), in future electric vehicles beginning in 2025.
“I think we have a real opportunity here to really drive this to be the unit unified standard for North America, which I think will even enable more mass adoption, so I couldn’t be more excited,” GM’s CEO Mary Barra said.
Starting in 2025, meanwhile, all new Polestar vehicles that are sold in North America will adopt Tesla’s connector.
NACS was developed by Tesla and has been used for all the company’s cars since 2012. Tesla opened the technology up to other manufacturers last year but limited access to Tesla Supercharger stations for a 10-year period.
