Detroit – A surprise deal between the two sides Ford and tesla Advances in EV charging technology and infrastructure could put new pressure on other automakers’ EV strategies.
Starting early next year, the partnership between the two rivals will give Ford owners access to more than 12,000 Tesla Superchargers in the U.S. and Canada. What’s more, Ford’s next generation of electric vehicles — expected in the mid-2000s — will use Tesla’s charging plugs, allowing Ford owners to charge at Tesla Superchargers without an adapter.
The agreement will make Ford one of the first automakers to explicitly join the network.
Ford CEO Jim Farley and Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced the deal in a live audio discussion on Thursday Twitter space. On Friday morning, Farley acknowledged that the merger would pose challenges for Ford’s rivals.
“I think GM and others are going to make big choices,” he said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
Farley’s comment mentions which EV plug should become the standard for charging in the US. Chargers called CCS are now the industry norm. Tesla vehicles and their network of Superchargers use what is called NACS. Other vehicles can use both, but they require an adapter.
“CCS is a great standard, but it’s pretty much done by a committee, and I think GM and others are going to make big choices,” Farley told CNBC. “Are they trying to fast charge their customers? Or are they trying to stick to their standards and charge less?
Ford shares rose more than 7 percent in Friday trading, to more than $12 a share. Tesla shares rose more than 5 percent, topping $194 a share.
Tom Narayan, an analyst at RBC Capital, said the Ford-Tesla deal could have a short-term negative impact on GM and other automakers that don’t have access to as many fast chargers, which have been banned. considered critical to expanding adoption of electric vehicles
“This news is clearly positive for Ford stock today (and likely negative for GM/STLA in the near term), but ultimately, we think this should be viewed as a positive for Tesla,” Narayan said in an investor note Friday. Playing the long game.”
Tesla said it has about 45,000 Supercharger Connectors at 4,947 Supercharger stations around the world.The company did not say how many are in the U.S. U.S. Department of Energy According to reports, there are only about 5,300 CCS fast chargers in the country.
General Motorswithout specifically responding to Farley’s comments, said it “believes that an open charging network and standards are the best way to drive adoption of electric vehicles across the industry.” GM said it was working with a group of companies and the Society of Automotive Engineers to develop and continue to Completing CCS’s open connector standard, which it says is important for “creating an open fast-charging network in North America.”
The Detroit automaker has announced several partnerships with electric vehicle charging providers and is lobbying the federal government for more support for such infrastructure.
Narayan mentioned Stellantis as another company that could feel the impact of the Ford-Tesla deal, but it did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“Full commitment”
Farley said Thursday that Ford is “fully committed” to a single U.S. charging agreement that includes Tesla plug ports.
Musk hinted at other automakers being able to use the Tesla Supercharger network when announcing the Farley deal, and The company’s charging port.
“Partnering with Ford and maybe others could make it a North American standard, and I think consumers would benefit from that,” Musk said on Thursday.
An all-electric Ford Mustang Mach-E is charging at a Tesla Supercharger station.
ford
Tesla has previously discussed opening up its private network to other electric vehicles. White House officials announced in February that Tesla had committed to opening 7,500 charging stations to non-Tesla EV drivers by the end of 2024.
Public charging of electric vehicles is a major concern for potential buyers, and with the exception of Tesla, no automaker has successfully built its own network. Instead, they announced partnerships with third-party companies that often proved unreliable and frustrating to owners.
Most U.S. drivers log vehicle miles from their home to nearby locations. But EV buyers who want to take longer road trips, or don’t have a garage with a charger, often worry about access to reliable public charging.
The problem is getting worse: At least 1 in 5 drivers failed charging attempts last year, it is claimed public charge study Posted by JD Power earlier this year.
According to another new study by J.D. Power, Tesla’s Supercharger ranks highest in overall customer satisfaction.
Wall Street is bullish
Wolfe Research analyst Rod Lache called the deal a “win-win” because it more than doubled access to fast chargers for Ford customers and improved utilization of Tesla’s network.
“For Ford, access to Tesla’s network helps address a major pain point for EV customers who would otherwise have to use third-party charging providers,” he said in an investor note on Friday. “At the same time, for Tesla, adding Ford customers will help improve network utilization, a key driver of profitability.”
Jim Farley and Elon Musk
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Morningstar analyst David Whiston said the deal is a big boost for Ford and its customers to use fast chargers. That “puts some pressure on other legacy automakers, but if you’re someone like GM, I don’t think you need to panic,” he added.
Whiston said he wanted to know more about the deal, such as cost, deadline and other unpublished details.
A Ford spokesman said more information about the deal will be revealed when Tesla opens its charging stations to Ford owners early next year.
– CNBC michael bloom, Laura Colodny and john rosewell contributed to this report.