Though Tesla’s future and growth prospects remain to be seen, other companies sense blood in the water after the automaker laid off its entire Supercharger team. British Petroleum (BP) Pulse recently told Bloomberg that it would aggressively pursue an expansion of its charging network with a “heightened focus following the recent Tesla announcement.”
BP’s EV charging business aims to gain ground on the automaker as it cancels some planned charging sites. Recent reports show that Tesla nixed a handful of Supercharger locations in New York, though it’s unclear how the layoffs and business plans will affect other future sites.
The oil giant previously reported its plans to invest more than $1 billion to expand its network in partnership with Love’s Travel Stops and Pilot-Flying J. It has also ordered tens of millions of dollars worth of Tesla Superchargers, though it will manage them independently of the automaker.
Other charging companies are eying expansions to fill any gaps left in the wake of Tesla’s upheaval. EVGo’s CEO said his organization would look to “pick up some of the slack” that the company leaves behind, and others have looked to take over Tesla’s canceled charging locations.
Even if Tesla’s charging network floats on relatively unchanged, it’s clear others see an opportunity and aren’t willing to wait and see how its fortunes unfold. That said, the Supercharger network is widely regarded as one of the nation’s best, so there’s no way to know if new locations from outside entities will offer anything near the same experience as they grow.
[Image: Richard OD via Shutterstock]
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