Mercedes joins the ranks of electric vehicle manufacturers building EV charging networks by partnering with ChargePoint and MN8 Energy, a large U.S.-based solar energy and battery storage operator, to offer their own super charging network. The Mercedes network will include 2,500 fast EV charging ports across 400 locations in the U.S. and Canada. The chargers will be located along major highway corridors and near retail businesses and restaurants.

ChargePoint is the largest EV charging network in the U.S. with over 27,000 stations with nearly 50,000 individual charging ports. Tesla follows with 6,000 station locations and 28,000 charging ports.

Mercedes plans to complete the full network by the end of the decade, also with the intention to sell all electric vehicles, depending on market conditions in this time frame. Networks in Europe and China will follow next.

Mercedes owners will be at an advantage with preferential access, ability to reserve charging ports and automatic authentication. Other EVs will still have access to the network.

This positions the company to compete with Tesla. Mercedes’ main advantage is that their network will be available for use by other EV brands, though Tesla claims that they plan to open their network to other brands as well. Partnering with a solar energy and battery storage operator is a smart move for the future of EV charging infrastructure adoption, presumably ensuring longevity. Charging networks are critical to EV charging accessibility and other auto manufacturers are certainly soon to follow.