As China’s power crisis worsens amidst record heat, many charging stations for electric vehicle (EV) automakers Tesla and NIO are becoming temporarily inoperable in certain regions.
Tesla and NIO have been forced to halt charging operations in two cities in the Sichuan province, due to an ongoing heatwave that’s putting pressure on the area’s grid, as reported by Automotive News.
The heat crisis in Sichuan is causing unprecedented temperatures for the electrical grid in both Chengdu and the nearby city Chongqing.
Tesla has turned off over a dozen Superchargers in Chengdu and Chongqing. Currently, Tesla has just two operational Superchargers between the cities and exclusively after the sun goes down.
Tesla China Denies Rumors of 4680 Batteries in Cars from Giga Shanghai https://t.co/hpaZNz2zHL
— TeslaNorth.com (@RealTeslaNorth) August 23, 2022
Through its charging app, NIO posted notices saying some of its Chengdu battery swap stations were “off-line” due to “severe overload on the grid under the persisting high temperatures.”
In addition to affecting Tesla and NIO, manufacturers such as Toyota and the world’s largest battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. (CATL) have been forced to shut down their factories.
Last week, Tesla asked China to help keep power running for its suppliers as reports held that Sichuan’s reservoirs were drying up because of an ongoing drought.
Over the weekend, around 10,000 Tesla vehicles were seen at a port in Shanghai being readied to export overseas.
