Tesla chief Elon Musk says reaching agreements with rival automakers General Motors and Ford that will soon allow their electric vehicle customers access to his company's Supercharger network nationwide was the right thing to do.
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, during the EEI 2023 event in Austin, Texas, June 13, 2023. (Jordan Vonderhaar/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
"I think opening up the chargers is morally right, and it was something that will help the industry become more electric," Musk told an audience Tuesday at the Edison Electric Institute's EEI 2023 conference. "It's something that will help power sustainability."
Ford announced last month that it reached a deal with Tesla that will allow Ford customers to utilize the 13,000-strong Supercharger network using a plug adapter starting next year. And the next generation of Ford EVs will have Tesla's North American Charging Standard (NACS) plug design as standard equipment.
Tesla made separate deals with competitors Ford and GM to allow their customers access to the EV giant's nationwide Supercharger network beginning in 2024. (Osmancan Gurdogan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Two weeks later, GM announced a similar deal with Tesla.
"Not only will it help make the transition to electric vehicles more seamless for our customers, but it could help move the industry toward a single North American charging standard," GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra said.
Musk told EEI Tesla will not favor one of its competitors over another in granting access to the Supercharger network.
Tesla vehicles are on display at a Tesla store in Palo Alto, Calif. (Yichuan Cao/NurPhoto via Getty Images / Fox News)
‘‘We're really just trying to do the right thing here," Musk said. "We will support GM and Ford cars on equal footing."