Tesla Supercharger Network extends to Scotland

The Tesla Supercharger Network now extends to Scotland, with the first Supercharger EV station north of the border opening at Edinburgh Airport.

The toughest part of convincing car buyers that electric cars are a viable alternative to ICE cars (apart from the cost) has been range anxiety and a lack of places to charge your clean, green electric machine.

But Tesla’s very left-field approach to business – well, certainly in comparison to traditional car manufacturers – has seen it produce the Model S with a real world range of around twice any other EV, and make provisions for recharging when needed.

That has seen the rapid roll-out of a Supercharger Network around the world allowing recharging of Teslas at strategically placed locations so Tesla drivers can plot a route to their destination that allows the electric equivalent of a ‘splash and dash’.

It’s not as convenient as a petrol filling station on every corner, but it’s an approach it’s hard to criticize and one we couldn’t see any traditional car maker being prepared to stump up for.

So far there are 221 Superchargers worldwide, and with the opening of a new one at Edinburgh Airport there are now eight in the UK, making it almost possible to travel the length and breadth of the country in a Tesla and know you can recharge.

Georg Ell, Tesla’s UK Country Director, said:

We’re really pleased to open our first Scottish Supercharger. The location makes travel in and around Edinburgh easy and also enables a route from Edinburgh to both Glasgow and Stirling and beyond.

It’s an exciting time for Tesla in Scotland. There are plans for an Edinburgh store and service centre next year, so watch this space for more activity.

Tesla are planning far more Supercharger stations in the UK, and by the end of next year there will be new charging points across the Midlands and North, East Anglia, down to the South West, in to Wales and Northern Ireland (and the Republic) too.

Perhaps makers of Hydrogen Fuel Cell cars should take a leaf out of Tesla’s book?