Tesla is expanding its charging infrastructure into a new area: office parking lots. A new “workplace charging” program unveiled today offers businesses free Tesla wall connectors and will also cover installation, provided they meet certain qualifications set forth by the California carmaker. Tesla won’t cover the cost of operating the charging stations, and the company says there could be other permitting, construction, zoning, or labor costs.
The workplace charging stations will be compatible with all Tesla cars, but not with other EVs, and they won’t show up on publicly available Tesla charging maps. The wall chargers are 240 volts, or “Level 2,” which is capable of topping off a battery pack in a handful of hours, though the company says the charge rate will vary by location depending on the infrastructure available.
While the Supercharger network is the best-known facet of Tesla’s charging infrastructure, the company has steadily diversified those efforts over the last few years. It runs a “destination charging” program that is similar to the new workplace one, where hotels and restaurants are able to install the chargers at no cost. Late last year, it announced smaller Superchargers tailor-made for space-strapped cities. Tesla also offers home charging and energy storage solutions.