By BREANA NOBLE The Detroit News/TNS
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General Motors Co. and Stellantis NV are joining five other automakers to create a joint venture focused on beating Tesla Inc. as the leading high-powered electric-vehicle charging network in North America.

The collaboration that also includes BMW AG, Honda Motor Co. Ltd., Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Corp. and the Mercedes-Benz Group seeks to install at least 30,000 high-powered charge points fueled by renewable energy in urban and highway locations near amenities. The first U.S. stations will be made available starting in the summer of 2024 with the venture subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals this year.

One of the largest obstacles to adoption of EVs, especially in the United States, is range anxiety and the lack of available convenient charging locations. There are 32,000 publicly available DC fast chargers in the United States for 2.3 million EVs, a ratio of 1:72, according to the U.S. Energy Department. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory estimates that the country will need 182,000 DC fast chargers to support up to 42 million plug-in vehicles on the road by 2030.

The stations installed by the JV will support two kinds of connectors: the Tesla-favored North America Charging Standard as well as the Combined Charging System that automakers like GM and Ford Motor Co. have been using. But those Detroit rivals recently have said they will adopt the NACS standard to give their customers access to Tesla’s Supercharger network with more than 12,000 chargers.

The new JV will leverage both public and private funds to build the multi-billion dollar network, though financial details aren’t being disclosed. The companies expect these investments will meet the requirements of the U.S. National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program supporting the installation of 500,000 U.S. chargers.