Tesla Thailand is pushing ahead with a plan to build 13 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations this year after opening its first Supercharger station at a shopping mall in central Bangkok.
The company, which launched two models of Tesla cars domestically last December, recently introduced its first super-fast charging station at CentralWorld.
The CentralWorld Supercharger station has a total of nine chargers. Drivers can recharge their vehicles in just 15 minutes with a charge that lasts up to 308 kilometres.
The facility is the first of 13 stations allocated for the city and upcountry.
The first upcountry station is scheduled to open in the second quarter of this year.
Malls are key venues for the charging facilities, said Tesla Thailand.
The company said it was committed to working with a range of partners, such as hotels, local attractions, cafes and restaurants across Thailand to offer Supercharger to customers.
The Federation of Thai Industries' (FTI) Automotive Industry Club said earlier that it expected concerns over limited EV charging services to ease in the long term as more charging facilities were being developed, which would benefit motorists who drive long distances.
There are several hundred EV charging stations in Bangkok and neighbouring provinces to serve the growing demand of drivers, said Surapong Paisitpatanapong, vice-chairman of the FTI and spokesman for the Automotive Industry Club.
He believes EV owners are not worried about charging stations as their numbers are growing, with new facilities being built at petrol stations, shopping malls, condominiums and housing estates.
According to the Thailand Board of Investment, Tesla is not participating in the government's EV incentive package, which grants excise tax cuts and subsidies to promote EV production and consumption in 2022 and 2023.
Participating companies are committed to producing EVs in Thailand from 2024.
In 2021 the National EV Policy Committee announced that it wanted EVs to constitute 50% of locally made vehicles by 2030, part of an ambitious plan to make Thailand a regional EV hub.
