Aptera Motors officially announced that it will integrate the newly opened North American Charging Standard or NACS (formerly the Tesla connector) into its electric vehicles.

Aptera underlines that is the first EV maker to integrate Tesla’s charging connector, instead of the SAE J1772 Combo / aka Combined Charging System (CCS1).

The company also revealed that the NACS charging inlet (vehicle side) and EV charging equipment (home charging unit) will be built by Lectron.

“Lectron is at the forefront of manufacturing chargers and adapters for both Tesla and J1772 EVs, which makes them the top choice for building the NACS charging inlet and EVSE for Aptera’s fleet of sEVs.”

The decision follows Tesla’s announcement to open its in-house developed charging connector for the EV industry in North America with an intention to make it a public standard (potentially the ultimate charging standard).

Aptera

Aptera not only would like to use Tesla’s charging connector because it fits to its ultra-efficient electric vehicles, but also supports the idea to adopt the NACS nationwide as a simpler, compact and cost-efficient solution.

Aptera even launched a petition to “encourage decision-makers in Congress to adopt Tesla’s charging standards and connectors as the U.S. industry standard.” So far it attracted over 40,000 signatures on the change.org platform.

By adopting the NACS, Aptera most likely will enter into partnership with Tesla to also get access to the Tesla’s Supercharging network.

If general charging networks in North America will adopt the NACS as well (initially in parallel to the CCS1), then both – Tesla and Aptera EVs – would be able to use public fast charging infrastructure.

In the case of the SAE J1772 (AC) plugs, charging is possible using an adapter. Such adapters are already available on the market.

Chris Anthony, Co-CEO of Aptera Motors said:

“We’re thrilled about this news and applaud Tesla for allowing and encouraging the EV industry to utilize its superior technology. We believe Tesla’s decision is an essential step toward shifting the future of transportation to a more efficient and greener direction, and we look forward to adopting its connector in our sEVs.”

“We hope our collaboration accelerates the growing momentum behind the NACS. Here’s to universal EV adoption and moving toward a better future together.”

Christopher Maiwald, Founder and CEO of Lectron commented:

“We’re excited about the news of Tesla opening up its NACS to the transportation industry. We believe the growing EV charging market needs innovations like this which greatly benefit equipment builders and end customers,”

“We also believe in fast and efficient charging, and that sustainability is the future of transportation. That’s why we’re excited to team up with such an innovative company as Aptera Motors. With their fleet of solar EVs, they are reimagining what an EV can be in terms of style and efficiency.”

The North American Charging Standard (NACS) battle with the CCS1 standard might take years, until eventually one of the two would become the ultimate solution. In another scenario, there will be two solutions.

As of December 1, 2022, we can add two first companies to the NACS’s camp – Aptera and Lectron.