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Tesla: Plug and Prejudice?
Imagine your brand is built on exclusivity. You’ve created the smoothest buyer experience in the market. Then the government comes along with a big bag of cash, but only if you share nicely.
As Australia’s electric vehicle market grows, our roads are filling with new badges like BYD, Polestar and MG (ok, MG is an old brand, but you know what I mean).
For years, Tesla drivers watched on from the comfort of their private club: the Tesla Supercharger network. It was usually queue-free because it was just for Tesla drivers.
Then, through the National Electric Vehicle Charging Network plan, the Federal Government offered charger owners money for increasing access to chargers.
To get the cash, Tesla would have to share the plug with other brands.
That set up a high-voltage decision for Tesla. With the government watching, should they keep their chargers exclusive? Or take the money, and let other brands onto their network?
The Strategy Standoff
Strategy A: Preserve Premium
Tesla could maintain the Supercharger network and preserve the premium experience.
This would protect the biggest differentiator beyond the car itself: a reliable and fast to charge experience competitors can’t match.
But this would mean giving up millions in grants and force Tesla to self-fund its future network expansion.
Strategy B: Open the Grid
By opening the network to all brands of EVs, Tesla could turn their chargers into a public utility.
This would keep the government happy and give Tesla revenue for distributing electricity to non-Tesla drivers.
However, Tesla drivers might react badly to queues at their former charge havens. And sharing chargers might make other EV brands more attractive to buyers!
So, Which Did They Choose?
Cast your vote to find out!
Better luck next time, Strategy B was chosen!
Good Job, Strategy B was chosen!
But what did this mean for Tesla...
Outcome: Facilitator Commentary
Matt Braithwaite-Young
Managing Partner
t +61 2 9002 3100
Tesla chose Strategy B. They decided to take the cash and open up their chargers to all brands.
Flicking the Switch on Exclusivity
In early 2023, Tesla started letting drivers of any EV brand use its supercharger sites.
The decision was a surprise to the industry, given Tesla's preference for going solo. But for those watching the politics of renewable energy, it was less of a shock.
The Federal Government plonked hundreds of millions of dollars on the table to solve Australia’s collective range anxiety.
A condition of getting funding was for chargers to be open access.
Tesla wasn’t about turn down free money to protect its brand experience, especially as it had already moved downmarket and dropped pricing of their lower-end models to appeal to less status-conscious (virtue signalling) buyers.
Plus, the Feds had just chipped in with massive tax savings for salaried employees leasing EVs – a gravy train that pulled the industry along until mid 2025. It would have been politically foolish to bite the hand that fed the EV category growth.
From Walled Garden to EV Grid
Tesla private chargers are now a taxpayer subsidised electricity distribution asset. Tesla had also ventured into infrastructure with battery electric storage systems (BESS) with a new large grid-connected battery in South Australia.
But what about the Tesla owners who suddenly had to share? Was there a backlash?
Non-Tesla drivers pay a higher price per kilowatt-hour, keeping them happier than they might have been.
But most are still happy because the queues everyone feared never fully eventuated. In 2025 plug in hybrid growth took over from pure EV and hybrid drivers aren’t as dependent on EV charging stations and are less likely to enter charger queue in front of a resentful Tesla buyer.
How to Supercharge Your Organisation
If your market is being reshaped by consumer trends, or changing government policy, the assets and advantages that once protected you can become your new liability.
It's tricky when your whole team needs to change direction. Clarity can come to different parts of your organisation at different times – creating a lack of focus at best and, more commonly, resistance to change.
A Turning Leaf strategy work-up helps your leadership team spot the context shifts behind difficult decisions. Our co-creation model lets you align your team and avoid decision paralysis.
Our trained facilitators will help your team understand the forces of consumer demand, industry trends and government policy. Your leadership team will align on a path to results.
To learn more, call Matt on +61 2 9002 3100.
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