Mercedes will build its own EV charging network

LAS VEGAS — Mercedes-Benz is taking a page out of the Tesla playbook on electric vehicle charging.

The luxury automaker revealed plans Thursday at CES to develop a global network of 10,000 high-speed chargers powered by green energy. The rollout will begin this year in the U.S. and Canada and expand to Europe, China and other major markets by decade's end.

Unlike Tesla's proprietary network of more than 40,000 Superchargers globally, the Mercedes branded chargers will be open to other automakers' vehicles from the outset.

Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Källenius described the charging network plans as a "differentiator" for the brand, which seeks to go all-electric by 2030 in ready markets.

"This is about adoption," Källenius said on a media call early Thursday. "We want to give Mercedes customers around the world yet another reason to join us on the journey towards electrification."

The overall investment in the charging network will be in the "low single-digit" billion euros, Källenius said.

In North America, Mercedes will partner with renewable energy and battery storage operator MN8 Energy to develop the sites, and with equipment provider ChargePoint to supply the chargers.

Mercedes and MN8 Energy will invest about $1 billion in the North American network over the next six to seven years.

"We believe this is a bankable asset," Källenius said. "This is something that you will be able to monetize when you come out of the investment phase."

Charging infrastructure remains a crucial challenge for EV adoption. Automakers have so far relied on a collection of third-party public charging networks, and they have lacked control over reliability and the charging experience.

Källenius acknowledged a robust charging infrastructure is necessary to drive EV sales.

"Our customers deserve a compelling charging experience that makes electric vehicle ownership and long-distance travel effortless," he said. "We won't take a wait-and-see approach for this to be built."

Mercedes-Benz dealer Jeff Aiosa said the brand's investment will help move metal.

EV adoption is being held back by a lack of affordability, customer concerns of range anxiety, and inadequate public charging infrastructure, said Aiosa, owner of Mercedes-Benz of New London in Connecticut.

But he said a Mercedes nationwide network of fast chargers "ticks two of those three boxes."

By 2027, Mercedes said it will have more than 400 sites and 2,500 chargers in North America. The network will offer up to 350-kilowatt charging and be upgraded as the technology advances.

While the network will be public, Mercedes customers will receive special pricing and preferential access via a reservation system.

Other benefits include a Plug & Charge function, which won't require Mercedes customers to swipe a credit card or use a mobile app to start charging.

Like Tesla Superchargers, the Mercedes chargers will communicate directly with the vehicle through the charging cable.

"There will be seamless integration between the car and [charger] software," Mercedes-Benz Chief Technology Officer Markus Schäfer said on the call. "We want to make charging like fueling — a pleasant experience."

Non-Mercedes customers will be able to access the chargers using a variety of payment functions.

The stations will be located where Mercedes customers shop, such as luxury retail developments and dealerships in major population centers.

"It's about location, location and location," Schäfer said. "We know where our customers are; we know where we are selling electric vehicles."