Photo: Tesla
The rise in energy prices has made charging electric vehicles more expensive across Europe and the U.S. Tesla, which operates the largest charging network in the world, was not shy in hiking the Supercharger rates in the past year. Nevertheless, it is now lowering them again, as users on both sides of the Atlantic reported.
Charging an electric car is usually way cheaper than filling up a gas tank, especially for owners who do it at home. In the past year, though, energy prices went haywire, and electricity costs spiked, especially in Europe, due to the effects of the Russian war in Ukraine. This year, some EV owners discovered that charging their batteries at public stations was no longer cheaper than refueling an ICE at a gas station.
Tesla’s own Supercharger network had to increase the rates across the U.S., reflecting the higher electricity costs. In Europe, Supercharger rates increased by as much as 30%. Tesla went even further and introduced dynamic pricing to encourage people to charge their cars outside peak hours. It pushed this policy a little too aggressively, though, with the peak hours covering almost the entire day, from 6 am to 10 pm. Following owners’ backlash, it reduced the interval to 4 pm to 8 pm.
It surely helped that Tesla uses the CCS plug in Europe, the same as almost every other charging station. This encouraged Tesla owners on the continent to charge their cars at third-party networks instead of Tesla Superchargers. It could also explain why Tesla first lowered the prices in Europe and why the decrease was significantly higher than in the U.S.
The changes were first shared on Twitter by @tesla_adri, who noticed fees at several Supercharger stations in Germany and Netherlands dropped by as much as €0.20 ($0.21) per kWh. Meanwhile, Tesla enthusiast Zack (@BLKMDL3) reported that the peak-hour fees only dropped by $0.05 per kWh at the West Hollywood Supercharger. Other uses in states like Florida, Georgia, and New York reported similar decreases.
Although Tesla owners in the U.S. don’t see the same benefit as those in Europe, the change is welcome nevertheless. It should also be noted that Tesla owners in the U.S. charge their cars mostly at home. On the other hand, Europeans are less likely to charge their cars at home because most live in apartment buildings and park their vehicles at the curb.
Tesla’s own Supercharger network had to increase the rates across the U.S., reflecting the higher electricity costs. In Europe, Supercharger rates increased by as much as 30%. Tesla went even further and introduced dynamic pricing to encourage people to charge their cars outside peak hours. It pushed this policy a little too aggressively, though, with the peak hours covering almost the entire day, from 6 am to 10 pm. Following owners’ backlash, it reduced the interval to 4 pm to 8 pm.
It surely helped that Tesla uses the CCS plug in Europe, the same as almost every other charging station. This encouraged Tesla owners on the continent to charge their cars at third-party networks instead of Tesla Superchargers. It could also explain why Tesla first lowered the prices in Europe and why the decrease was significantly higher than in the U.S.
The changes were first shared on Twitter by @tesla_adri, who noticed fees at several Supercharger stations in Germany and Netherlands dropped by as much as €0.20 ($0.21) per kWh. Meanwhile, Tesla enthusiast Zack (@BLKMDL3) reported that the peak-hour fees only dropped by $0.05 per kWh at the West Hollywood Supercharger. Other uses in states like Florida, Georgia, and New York reported similar decreases.
Although Tesla owners in the U.S. don’t see the same benefit as those in Europe, the change is welcome nevertheless. It should also be noted that Tesla owners in the U.S. charge their cars mostly at home. On the other hand, Europeans are less likely to charge their cars at home because most live in apartment buildings and park their vehicles at the curb.
— Tesla_Adri (@tesla_adri) November 23, 2022
Tesla cut the price of supercharging across LA and parts of California it seems! Some superchargers are 5 cents/kWh cheaper on peak which adds up! Some superchargers did increase though for their on peak pricing. pic.twitter.com/F2uYSAIZvW
— Zack (@BLKMDL3) November 23, 2022
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