Tesla Rolls Out a Pricing Plan for Its No-longer-free Supercharging Stations

After lulling everyone into a false sense of security, Tesla Motors recently announced that it will begin billing new customers for making use of its Supercharging stations. The promise of free charging was replaced with the promise that the company wouldn’t profit from the powering fee — instead, it would use the money to expand its growing network of stations.

While the pricing structure is about as rigid as boiled spaghetti, the EV manufacturer does appear to be respecting the nature of the new deal. Announced Thursday, all Tesla vehicles ordered after January 15th will receive around 1,000 miles worth of charging credits, updated annually, before becoming subject to the company’s new charging monetization.

Unfortunately, due to state regulations and regional demand for power, pricing will vary greatly depending on where you plug in.

Tesla’s official announcement states, “In North America, pricing is fixed within each state or province; overseas, pricing is fixed within each country.”

That means the majority of owners will be paying per kilowatt hour, which can vary rather dramatically. While some of the Southern states currently hover around 10 cents per kWh, prices in Northeast can be twice as high. However, due to local regulations, some states will be required to charge per minute of usage.

Tesla says that the Supercharging fee equates to a $15 for a road trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles or about $120 for a cross-country trip from Los Angeles to New York.

Supercharging stations are typically located at or near highways, intended to alleviate range anxiety and make longer-range EV trips possible. With around 800 locations worldwide, Tesla can’t be faulted too harshly if a penny or two goes into expanding that charging network, especially as the Model 3 approaches and plug-in spaces begin to dwindle.

[Image: Tesla]