Tesla Cuts Hit Supercharger Expansion

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The Wall Street Journal reports that the opening of new EV Supercharger ports dropped 28% from May through August compared to last year. The reason given was large layoffs in the Tesla division that makes these installations. A lack of charging stations is a primary reason for slowing EV adoption.

Tesla’s Supercharger network is vital because many other companies that make EVs have abandoned their charging station networks to use Tesla’s. Several independent companies have tried to build networks but with little success. At one point, it was assumed that Tesla would make a great deal of money on the charging station business.

160,000 Charging Ports

According to one estimate, there are over 160,000 charging outlets in the US. However, approximately 45,000 are in California, which also has the largest number of EVs on the road.

Several challenges, including charging stations, have undermined EV adoption. The others are EV prices, which average $55,000. A new gas-powered car costs about $45,000. Another is range. People worry that EVs travel less than 300 miles on a single charge. The lack of charging stations raises this an issue for people who travel long distances.

Because of their torque, EVs also go through tires faster than most gas-powered cars. Finally, many batteries will charge only 70% of their capacity in cold weather.