Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has tightened its grip on the global electric vehicle (EV) charging market with European petrol station group EG saying it will acquire ultra- fast chargers from Elon Musk’s car company.
Most US carmakers have now agreed to use the Tesla network, but EG is the first third-party charge point operator deal it has signed up in Europe.
EG's owners, the Issa brothers, also run Asda and the grocery chain recently purchased 350 stations in the UK from the petrol retailer.
Chargers will be branded 'evpoint' and will be available to all EV drivers, EG said, with Tesla providing the hardware.
Since November, most electric cars have been able to use Tesla chargers at points that have a ‘magic dock adaptor’.
Zuber Issa said: “Securing this best-in-class equipment from Tesla marks another milestone for evpoint and is hugely exciting for us.
“It is the first deal of its kind entered into by Tesla with a third-party charge point operator in Europe and will transform how our customers charge their vehicles and how they interact with EG.”
Rebecca Tinucci, Tesla’s senior director of charging infrastructure, said: “The rapid installation of reliable, easy-to-use EV charging infrastructure is the right step towards a sustainable future and a key area of focus for us at Tesla."
In August, the RAC estimated there were 1,100 Tesla chargers across the UK in 115 locations.