For EV drivers, Tesla's North American Charging Standard (NACS) plugs have been in a longstanding war with the also-popular Combined Charging System (CCS) plugs. That battle only heated up more when Tesla opened up its NACS network to non-Tesla vehicles.
The latest news on that front is good for Tesla and non-Tesla drivers of many kinds.
Kentucky has become the first state to mandate the use of NACS chargers at all of its federally funded EV charging stations, as reported by CleanTechnica.
So far, this EV plug war has largely been swung by the federally funded electric vehicle charging stations that are being built along highways as part of the Biden Administration's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which established a program that will provide a total of $5 billion in funding over five years for a nationwide network of EV charging stations.
While the U.S. Department of Transportation has mandated that all federally funded EV charging stations must include CCS chargers, which are currently compatible with many more types of electric vehicles than NACS ones, it is up to states whether they want to include NACS chargers as well.
Currently, Washington and Texas are still deliberating that question. While both seem to be leaning toward including NACS chargers, groups with a financial interest in CCS chargers winning the war have put enough pressure on the Texas legislature that it has delayed a vote on which chargers it will include.
However, the news out of Kentucky may point toward NACS winning the battle — eventually.
Also in favor of the NACS is the fact that Tesla is making it compatible with more types of cars, having struck deals with both Ford and GM. In addition, the Volkswagen-owned charging station company Electrify America has announced that it will add NACS plugs to its stations, along with CCS connectors.
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