No single entity “owns” or invests in the 3(?) non-Tesla charging networks. Chargepoint is the largest; they now are ~$500m/yr revenue and growing 90%+ a year… getting massive subsidies… but where are the support employees??
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Didn’t Shell recently buy Volta?
DB2
That was most likely a cheap form of “greenwashing”, cost them under $200M total.
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This sort of problem is why I think eventually we will need chargers at “gas station” sorts of establishments, so that someone has the resources and interest to keep them working. Putting them in shopping center and restaurant parking lots won’t keep them working.
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And to the north…
Two different federal infrastructure programs have provided funding for more than 43,000 electric vehicle chargers since 2016, but new data shows fewer than one in five of them are actually operational.
The information provided by Natural Resources Canada came as Energy Minister Jonathan Wilkinson visited Quebec City Wednesday to announce another $25 million to fund 1,500 EV chargers in Quebec.
DB2
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A pioneering scholarly review of 1 million EV charging station consumer reviews, led by a Harvard Business School fellow, reveals widespread dissatisfaction with the current state of EV charging infrastructure. Among other things, the deep dive into tomorrow’s gas station network estimates that drivers can successfully recharge their cars using non-residential EV equipment only 78% of the time, highlighting critical issues with reliability.
DB2
Between simple malfunctioning card readers, apps that don’t always app, ICEheads who block the chargers, and copper thieves who make off with the connecting cables, I wonder if there isn’t a place for a little booth with a guy inside who oversees the thing, as so many gas stations do nowadays. Where is it written that these things can stand unattended 24/7?
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Since they are currently unattended adding a person would increase the overhead and rate charge. Maybe they could make up for the increased costs by selling food and drink?
DB2
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Tesla sales just surprised to the upside. The stock popped by 5%.
Well, it was down year over year, it “surprised” only because they convinced analysts to lower expectations enough that they could come in “over.”
Lowering expectations before the big event. Maybe politicians should try it 
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Yep, and this is a BIG problem. The goal at Tesla was for roughly 50% average growth through 2030. With this year looking flat-ish, 2025 through 2029 is going to require more than an average of 50% to reach that goal (I think the 50% average growth rate was needed for Tesla to reach 20M sales in 2030 or thereabouts).
There is a switch over from Chinese production to US/Mexico as the global engine of growth.
Possibly in the 2H24 we see a major upswing in US GDP growth and consumption.
US inflation has been beat down. Inflation is no longer an issue.
The industrials are slow for this 1H24. That is probably seasonal. It is early but the untold story would be a major rebound in the US economy.
I can’t figure out why they don’t put most of the chargers at gas stations. But I don’t have an EV, so what do I know.
They’re putting a lot of them there. Wawa and Bucees have lots and lots of chargers. A standard “side of the road” gas station isn’t very convenient for charging because you want to be able to make good use of your time (8 to 25 minutes) while charging. That’s why Wawa and Bucees is great - lots of bathrooms, shopping, food, snacks, entertainment, etc.
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I can’t figure out why they don’t put most of the chargers at gas stations.
MONEY. Dependent on traffic. Tesla isn’t installing them everywhere for free, and the screwed up non-profit, unmaintained mess that is ChargePoint/EVgo/freecharge of the week.com / isn’t going to pay to install or maintain them without more gummint money.
Tesla went it alone because they were forced to, and the superchargers are in high traffic / high option locations: food, supplies, coffee, bathrooms. Wawa, Sheetz, Bucees GET IT - they get more traffic and more sales, which is where the profits are, so they have become a key partner of Tesla. Great business relationship. The corner Irvings/Circle K’s of the world don’t or can’t get it, and a lot of them don’t have enough EVs nearby as a % of traffic to make the installation cost worthwhile. Those will wait until it’s 50/50 ICE/EV. And then there’s the counter-factual belief / fear that EV charging will destroy the entire electrical grid forever, there’s no hope for mankind, freedom in gas forever.
FC
I’ve only been on a few long multi-day road trips in my M3…so maybe others have a different experience. But when I went from CA to Glacier NP in MT I tried to plan out one stop per day to get a long-ish charge (20-30 min). It was nice to not be eating the stuff they sell at quick markets, often at least a sit down restaurant. Of course I also stopped at/near gas stations and bought some drinks or snacks usually for shorter recharges.
Mike
I listened to a speech this evening. A “new dealish” thing, that funds things like installing chargers, would go away. EVs would go away.
Oil and gas production to be increased.
Steve…long big oil.
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I fear you wasted your time…
Perhaps one of your DVDs or a good book (not THE good book…) would have been a better use of your evening.
I figure knowledge is good, even if some of it is not what I would want to hear.
Steve
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