Electrify America and Polestar join rush to adopt Tesla charging standard

Electrify America has become the latest charging network to adopt Tesla’s North American Charging Standard (NACS). So, too, has Swedish based EV maker Polestar.

At the beginning of 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuel Data Center, Electrify America has 839 total charging locations in the U.S. with 3,701 individual charging points.

According to Forbes Tesla has almost five times that number with around 17,000 Supercharging stations across the country which make up around 60% of all fast chargers in the US.

Although Electrify America is much smaller, it’s still a major charging network and will need to offer the NACS connector to accomodate major OEMs who’ve also recently adopted the standard.

What we’re seeing with major automakers and charging networks all announcing they will adopt the NACS connector is effectively the “network effect” playing out, whereby the value of a particular connector increases as more users (networks and OEMs) commit to start using it.

Electrify America says it will add the NACS connector to Electrify America and Electrify Canada’s fast charging networks as part of the company’s commitment to broaden charging solutions for EV drivers today and in the future.

“Electrify America will continue to provide the Combined Charging System (CCS-1) connector throughout its network as it transitions to also support automakers adding NACS charging ports, the company said in a statement.

“The company will work to offer a NACS connector option at existing and future charging stations by 2025 to make charging as convenient as possible for EV owners.”

A wholly owned subsidiary of Volkswagen Group of America, Electrify America was established in 2016 as part of Volkswagen’s settlement in the wake of the emissions scandal that engulfed the company, commonly known as the “Dieselgate” scandal.

Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath confirmed that Polestar would also adopt the NACS while acknowledging Tesla’s pioneering role in accelerating the EV revolution.

“@elonmusk, saluting the pioneering work Tesla has done to speed up the adoption and increase the popularity of electric vehicles. Pleased to adopt NACS and give Polestar drivers in the US and Canada access to @teslaCharging’s Supercharger network” said Ingenlath in a tweet today.

.@elonmusk , saluting the pioneering work Tesla has done to speed up the adoption and increase the popularity of electric vehicles. Pleased to adopt NACS and give Polestar drivers in the US and Canada access to @teslaCharging’s Supercharger network https://t.co/l1GYiIixxy

— Thomas Ingenlath (@ThomasIngenlath) June 29, 2023

Polestar joins Ford, GM, Rivian and Volvo who have also committed to the NACS for future vehicles. Earlier this week the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) confirmed it would develop a standard for the NACS.

The world’s second largest automaker Volkswagen has also confirmed that it’s in talks with Tesla to adopt the NACS connector for its EVs in North America.

“Volkswagen Group and its brands are currently evaluating the implementation of the Tesla North American Charging Standard (NACS) for its North American customers.” Volkswagen said.

If it does make the switch, VW will be the first of the major European and Asian automakers to adopt the new standard.

Daniel Bleakley is a clean technology researcher and advocate with a background in engineering and business. He has a strong interest in electric vehicles, renewable energy, manufacturing and public policy.