Texas Mandates Tesla's NACS Connector for Charging Station Subsidies

In a significant move for the electric vehicle (EV) industry, Texas has officially mandated the inclusion of Tesla's NACS connector in charging stations to qualify for over $400 million in subsidies.

The NACS connector, designed by Tesla, is being promoted as the new charging standard in North America. Following the initial announcements by several automakers to adopt the NACS connector, the Texas Department of Transportation revealed its intentions to make the NACS connector a prerequisite for accessing millions in new funding allocated for charging stations.

However, this initiative faced resistance from charging station companies, primarily due to concerns about procuring the NACS connectors for station construction. Despite the pushback and subsequent delay in the voting process, Texas has now officially approved the plan. As per a report by Reuters, the state has decided to mandate the inclusion of Tesla's technology in EV charging stations for eligibility to federal funds, even amidst calls for additional time to re-engineer and test the connectors.

This new state requirement complements the federal requirements, which stipulate that charging stations must be equipped with CCS connectors. As a result, charging stations in Texas will now need to feature both CCS and NACS connectors to be eligible for federal funding. Notably, Texas is set to receive the highest federal funding for EV charging stations among all states, amounting to $407 million.

Electrek's perspective on this development is that it's a step in the right direction. With the momentum evidently favoring the NACS connector to become the new North American standard and the existing prevalence of EVs with NACS connectors on US roads surpassing those with CCS connectors, this decision is seen as a logical move.

The allocated funds are scheduled for distribution and utilization over a span of five years.