(Reuters) – Electric-vehicle (EV) charger maker SK Signet said on Thursday it was adding products compatible with the North American Charging Standard (NACS), after major U.S. automakers Ford and GM said they were adopting Tesla’s model of charging.
Electric vehicle charging companies are cautiously embracing Tesla’s charging technology as the main U.S. standard, as they are in danger of losing out on customers if they offer only the Combined Charging System (CCS).
Earlier this week, EV charging equipment makers Blink Charging, ChargePoint and Tritium said they will offer chargers with Tesla’s connector.
SK Signet, which is part of South Korea’s SK Group, said it has started development of its ultra-fast chargers that meet NACS standards and expects to release a compliant product in 2023 enhancing accessibility for more EV owners.
The White House last week said that EV charging stations that offer Tesla plugs would be eligible for billions of dollars in federal subsidies as long as they included CCS connectivity. The White House aims to spur deployment of hundreds of thousands of chargers, which it sees as integral to EV adoption.
The rare agreements between Tesla and each of the two U.S. automakers will put them on course to control more than 60% of the country’s EV market.
SK Signet will continue to provide customers with the option of other widely used standards for EV charger connections, including the CCS, CHAdeMO and the Megawatt Charging System.
(Reporting by Samrhitha Arunasalam in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
