Tesla debunks myth on charging as Australia’s infrastructure grows

One of the biggest perceived barriers to EV adoption is range anxiety, with many prospective EV owners thinking that they will be constantly charging their new electric car.

Tesla in Europe has released a new data point on charging behaviour showcasing that this is not the case among Tesla EV owners. 

On Twitter, Tesla shared a post highlighting that 85% of Tesla owners fast-charge their EV less than once a week.

This lines up with many of The Driven’s readers, who say they do the majority of their charging at home.

Tesla also mentions the use of CCS plug which allows access to many more charging stations. 

The latest data from carloop on charging plugs shows that as of May 2023, 83.5% of the sites across Australia have a charger with both CCS2 and CHAdeMO plugs.

Interestingly, 4% of all Australian commissioned fast-charging sites have CCS2-only plugs and were opened in the first five months of 2023. 

Charging away from home is a key area of focus for many government and private operators.

On the back of the National EV strategy, NRMA was awarded funding for 117 new fast-charging stations across Australia. 

This funding round includes fast-charging sites along many major highways across the country with a goal to make charging easier and in turn encourage Australian drivers to think of an EV when purchasing their next new car.

With Tesla also trialling opening up its supercharger network to non-Tesla EVs, it would also help adding more fast-charging plugs for all EV owners in the coming months.

The availability of compelling EVs and a reliable fast-charging network are the key to alleviating some of the concerns future buyers may have. 

It’s good to see that the operator of the largest, most-reliable charging network in the world is sharing key data points to help ease some of the concerns future owners may have about EV charging. 

This can only be a good thing for EV adoption not only in Europe but around many other parts of the world.