Charging remains major challenge for Tesla in China

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2015-01-18

A Tesla car being charged in a station in Hangzhou's Dragon Hotel, Aug. 28,
2014. There are 12 power chargers at the hotel. (File photo/ CNS)

Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk revealed on Jan. 13 weak sales in the fourth quarter in China due to concerns over charging its electric vehicles. As a result, the auto maker's share price dropped US$14 in a 6.85% fall at the close of trading on the same day.

Tesla attributed to the slowed sales to Chinese potential consumers' "misperceptions about the ease of charging" and that the company is working on clearing up the misconceptions by explaining "the ease and convenience of charging," reported US's Business Insider.

Tesla China told Tencent's tech news portal that sales in the fourth quarter were "not bad" but not as good as expected.

Not enough charging locations and the fact that the car maker's charging portal is incompatible with the new government-built charging network are holding Chinese buyers back, said Tencent.

Tesla continues to expand the charging network in China, said Tesla communications chief Ricardo Reyes. Over the last year, Tesla has expanded the number of service centers and charging stations in major Chinese cities. More than 800 charging stations in over 70 cities' malls and office buildings, and 52 supercharger stations in over 20 cities have been built.

The electric car maker additionally provides options for home chargers that could fill the battery overnight. Charging at a supercharger station takes 30 minutes to fill a car to run about 250 km, and a general charging location could charge at a speed between the previous two.

But this is far from enough, said Tencent. China does not yet have the long-distance charging networks seen on US highways. For a Chinese driver who wishes to go hundreds of kilometers from Beijing to Guangzhou, it would be rather time- and effort-consuming.

To make matters worse, the Tesla charging portal is incompatible with the specifics applied in the nationally-owned charging networks, which work for local electronic car brands. In January, a new charging network built by the government was launched in Beijing and Shanghai.

Tesla said as authorities revise the nation's standard specifics for charger portals, the car maker will make adjustments to their designs accordingly once the new regulations are announced.

Despite falling sales and customer anxiety about charging issues, Tencent said that Tesla still holds great hope for the Chinese market as the car maker looks to adjust the car based on feedback from the Chinese customers. For example, the height of seats has been slightly adjusted, and the cushions are stuffed with softer material to improve rider comfort.

Tesla sold more than 22 million cars in China in 2013, which accounted for over 25% of its global sales. The company's shares had gained 48% in 2014 but is down 13% this year.