Tesla looking for partners in China to build charging network

Reading Time: 1 minute

News like this to your inbox or phone?

Weekly summary to your inbox

Never miss and important news

Get Instant notification once the news is published.

- Advertisement -

Tesla hopes to sell big in China and the reception of the high tech Tesla Model S has been very positive. However, just like any other electric auto maker in China Tesla is facing one huge obstacle: there are simply no facilities for charging, except for a few experimental stations in faraway suburbs that usually only charge one specific kind of experimental electric car.

- Advertisement -

In January Tesla announced a rather ambitious and rather dubious plan to build a ‘super charger network’ on roads connecting Beijing to Shanghai. Building something that big and that new requires permissions from zillions of government agencies, and lots of money and lots of time. Tesla so, has started looking for help.

Various Chinese media are reporting today that Tesla has contacted a company called NARI Technology Development for talks about building more charging stations. NARI (web) is a subsidiary of the State Grid Corporation of China, the gigantic state-owned power company that enjoys a near-monopoly. Tesla has not confirmed the reports.

NARI has some experience in the charging business. It built experimental station in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Chongqing, Zhejiang and Jiangxi, and has stations under construction in Hebei, Fujian and Guangdong.

- Advertisement -

NARI thus might sound like a good partner as they might be able to build more and less-experimental stations. But what Tesla really needs is a company that can build and operate stations within the city; in parking lots, at shopping malls, under apartment buildings, and under office buildings.

All of this does not exist yet so Tesla has a lot of work to do before sales can really take off. Sure it can sell some cars now, to wealthy buyers who have their own garage and can install their own super charger, but this is still a very small group in China.



 

- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -

3 COMMENTS

  1. There is an ethics crisis at Tesla Motors that is making its cars unsafe.

    I think it was poor Tesla Motors designs, to locate a large lithium automotive battery so close to the roadway with such light protection. Customers of Chevy Volts, Nissan Leafs, and Toyotas Rav4EV allegedly haven’t had any fires from road debris or vehicle accidents; yet Tesla Motors has recently had three.

    I think Tesla poorly designed some of its charge connections. Some of the charge connections seem to be not to be robust enough for the amount of current duration. Also the configuration of adapters puts an undue amount of stress on the wall outlets and connectors which can lead to outlet failures, connector failures and fires. Also the design configuration puts a lot of connections close together which allows the concentration of heat and increases the probability of fire. In my opinion they are poor engineering designs that are fire hazards.

    What about the Tesla related garage fire in Toronto? What caused the Tesla related garage fire in Toronto? The public should know what the fire department investigation found. I would prefer an independent non-bias investigation. I’m hoping to hear reports from the fire departments investigation, because I don’t trust Tesla’s “fire investigations”, which seem more like coverups. Allegedly the fire department said the source of the fire was the Tesla.

    Why is Tesla Motors dragging its feet on the Tesla charger related fire hazard recall? When is Tesla motors going to comply with the recall? It wasn’t until people reported the charger problems to the media and government that Tesla declared a recall. Tesla is reactive instead of proactive. Tesla charging systems have been known to be hazardous for about a year, perhaps more, yet the safety hazards have not been fixed.

    Tesla manufactures more excuses & hype, then cars. Tesla Motors still has not delivered on the fire hazard recall. Tesla has been dragging its feet on safety and the recall.

    There has been at least five significant Tesla related fires.

    The most recent Tesla garage fire to hit the news was in Toronto. The car supposedly wasn’t even plugged in, so the charging system isn’t likely to be a source in that fire. There should be disclosure on this fire. The public should know where and how this fire started. Was the origin of the fire the Tesla? How did the fire start? Was it a Tesla design or manufacturing fault?

    There has been at least five Tesla fires. Two Teslas caught on fire after only running over road debris. One Tesla caught on fire and EXPLODED after being in an accident in Mexico. There was a Tesla fire in a California garage, that the Tesla charger connection was ruled as a possible source of the fire by the fire department. Recently there was a Tesla garage fire in Toronto, that so far I haven’t heard the fire department give a ruling. Arguably there has been scores, possibly hundreds of minor Tesla fires. There has been a plethora of Tesla charge connectors that have overheated, melted and burned. Though many Tesla shills will argue that they are not fire. Categorically and scientifically they are often classified as fire. Rapid oxidation or rapid decomposition from excessive heat is often classified as fire. Like the metaphor; where there is smoke, there is fire.

    A few months ago there was a Tesla related garage fire in California that the fire department ruled that the Tesla Motors charging system was a possible source of the fire. A firefighter was injured responding to the fire. The suspect portion of the Tesla charging system that the fire department in California determined was a possible source of the California garage fire, is also suspected in many other Tesla charger reported cases that Tesla charge connections have overheated, melted and burned. Tesla issued a software “fix”, however Tesla charge connectors have continued to overheat, melt and burn despite the so-called “fix”.

    Some customers allege that the charger related software update that is supposed to reduce current when a fault is detected, in some cases actually increases the current. The so-called “fix” has introduced other problems, one of the alleged problems is a safety hazard. One customer claimed that they experienced a glitch that increases current when a fault is detected before the charger related software update. Either way the alleged condition supposedly can dangerously increase the current above user settings.

    The Tesla model S. still has defects that make it a fire hazard. Tesla Motors charger connections are still overheating, melting and burning. Tesla Motors batteries are poorly located and poorly protected.

    On 01/09/2014 Elon Musk said that replacement adapters that are part of the recall would be mailed out within two weeks. A month later Tesla customers still have not received the replacement adapters that are part of the Tesla model S. recall.

    Several people have been injured by faulty Tesla charge connectors. Tesla is big on making promises and hype, but short on delivery. Tesla needs to start making safety a top priority. Tesla needs to stop playing blame games and games with semantics. Tesla needs to stop lying. Tesla needs to be proactive instead of reactive. Tesla is being a follower of technology, rather than a leader. Tesla is a greedy corporation that has a disregard for safety.

    The Tesla model S. charger recall is for the vast majority of Tesla model Ss. There is nearly 30,000 Teslas that are part of the recall, that have a potential fire hazard. So far it seems not any customers have been mailed warnings about these fire hazards. Allegedly some customers are only finding out about the recall fire hazards after having failures and then searching the Internet.

    The media should do a better job. The vast majority of news coverage on Tesla has been creampuff articles that seem more like advertising then news articles. The media should not give favorable treatment to greedy corporations that skimp on safety. The media should scrutinize Tesla more, instead of shilling for them and treating them with kid gloves.

    The news media has done a horrible job covering the Tesla fires and fire hazards. The news media makes it sound like there isn’t any Tesla fire hazards. The news media makes it sound like there isn’t any problems with Tesla chargers. The news media makes it sound like all of the Tesla charger problems is the fault of wall outlets and house wiring. The news media makes it sound like, Tesla owners have already received replacement adapters under the recall.

    The news media should do investigative reporting, instead of shilling for greedy corporations. The news media shouldn’t tell lies to inflate stock prices. The media shouldn’t be in bed with Tesla. The news media shouldn’t be veiled advertising. The news media should be part of the solution, instead of part of the problem. The news media should not be sweeping safety hazards under the carpet.

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/15304-Plug-Adapter-on-my-Universal-Mobile-Connector-has-melted

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/15304-Plug-Adapter-on-my-Universal-Mobile-Connector-has-melted/page7

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/18092-Schmelted-UMC-NEMA-14-50

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/23212-Scary-issue-with-Nema-14-50-adapter-melting

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/25669-False-Positives-With-FW-5-8-4-Charge-Current-Reduction/page9?p=548210#post548210

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/25992-Tesla-to-Upgrade-Wall-Adapters-After-Reports-of-Garage-Fires-Bloomberg-News/page2?p=546987#post546987

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/26190-Flurry-of-recent-NHSTA-complaints-filed-over-the-last-few-days?p=553285&viewfull=1#post553285

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/26926-Mobile-charger-will-not-work-properly/page2?p=573242&viewfull=1#post573242

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/26926-Mobile-charger-will-not-work-properly/page2?p=573773&viewfull=1#post573773

    http://www.teslamotors.com/forum/forums/melted-connector

    http://www.teslamotors.com/forum/forums/where-are-replacement-1450-plugs

    http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/27222-Has-anyone-received-a-replacement-14-50-in-the-mail

    http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-01-11/tesla-to-upgrade-adapter-on-reports-of-garage-overheating.html

    Tesla burns and explodes in Mexico, after a crash.
    http://youtu.be/RCn1CufaCYc

    Is faulty Tesla Motors designs going to have to cause deaths before Tesla Motors, Tesla fan boys, and the news media start taking safety seriously? Even then I suspect some of them will try to play blame games.

    If Tesla was proactive and a leader of technology, their products would have been better designed.

    The Tesla charge connections have been known to be a fire hazard for about a year. That should have been time for Tesla Motors to recognize the problems and come up with engineering solutions. Instead Tesla has been playing blame games, games of semantics and making token efforts.

    Tesla Motors and Tesla fan boys should not be censoring, harassing, threatening, slandering and bullying safety advocates, customers with unsafe defective products, critics, and skeptics. Tesla has a culture that has a disregard for safety.

    Allegedly nearly 3% (nearly 900) Tesla charger adapters have been returned and or reported defective.

    If you’re willing to settle for a Tesla, that’s your choice. My standards are much higher.

    Is a Tesla in an attached garage going to have to catch fire and burn down a house and result in a death of a family before people wake up and smell the coffee?

  2. Charging stations are such a huge obstacle, in the way of Beijing’s objectives, that I would think they would jump at the chance to collaborate with Tesla’s can-do-anything guy, Elon Musk. Question is, can they get beyond Musk laughing at their favorite son, BYD.

    They musk and they will __, we might say……. 🙂

  3. @JIM

    How do you have so much time to collate and write so much anti-Tesla drivel?

    Are you a Texas car dealer who fears the end of their corrupt cash gravy train derailed by Tesla’s NO DEALERS THANK YOU business model?

    Thank goodness it doesn’t take long to show how insulting to the intelligence your claims are.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

- Advertisement -