Tesla Motors planning massive expansion of its supercharger network over the next few months

At the unveiling of Tesla Motors new mass-market electric car, the Tesla Model 3, CEO Elon Musk promised his company will now invest heavily into expanding its supercharger network. 

Specifically, he said the network would double in size by the end of 2017. 

In terms of numbers, there are 613 supercharger stations and 3,628 individual chargers in the world right now. Should Musk’s scale-up hit all of its marks, then by the end of next year, there will be more than 1,200 stations and 7,000 chargers throughout North America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific regions.

Additionally, the number of Destination chargers—basically a Tesla-branded plug that owners are allowed to use free-of-charge at places like hotels, restaurants, etc.—is slated to quadruple during this time frame, and hit the 15,000 mark. 

Musk added that Tesla Motors will also double the size of its retail footprint; at present, there are 215 locations where shoppers can go to purchase a Tesla car. He wants to expand to 441 shops by the end of 2017 as well. 

Driving all of this is the assumption that the company’s new Model 3 electric vehicle will be a success; pre-order numbers thus far suggest it’s well on its way to being just that. 

Via Mashable