Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) opened four new charging stations on Tuesday in collaboration with Deutsche Bahn, the rail operator, according to Reuters. The stations are located along the key autobahn routes to facilitate the electric car owners and prospective buyers for long distance commuting in Germany.
Tesla vehicles different from rivals
The Model S maker is striving to form a network of superchargers stations to increase the popularity of electric cars, which have failed for decades to gain substantial traction in markets like Germany due to their range limitations and few charging stations.
Other automobile juggernauts like BMW, which recently launched the i3 vehicle, and Daimler, which launched an electric version of its smart car, have positioned these vehicles as primarily city cars for short distances. However, Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) claims that its Model S can go up to 500 kilometres, but limited infrastructure is the main constraint lack of demand.
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and DB Energie, a unit of Deutsche Bahn, which supplies electricity for Germany’s rail network, are claiming to have designed the charging stations with 120 kilowatts of direct current power; charging half of the battery in just 20 minutes.
DB Energie and Flinkster, a Deutsche Bahn owned car-sharing business are also working together to build charging stations for its fleet of 450 electric vehicles.
Plans to cover half of Germany
Charging stations have opened at Wilnsdorf, Bad Rappenau, Aichstetten and Jettingen, which means that Tesla owners could drive between the cities of Munich, Stuttgart, Frankfurt am Main and Cologne.
By building the Superchargers in Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the Netherlands, Tesla has expanded its network considerably in Europe. Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) plans to build a charging stations network that allows owners to travel destination in half of the Germany, by 2014, according to a spokeswoman of the company. At present, the company has opened at least 14 supercharger stations across Europe that offer the owners six to eight destinations where they can charge 80% of the battery in around 30 minutes.
On Wednesday morning at 9:30 EST, Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) stock was up around half a percent at $177.
