First look at Tesla’s first ‘public’ electric semi truck charging station

Tesla is planning its first full-scale ‘public’ electric semi truck charging station, and its site plans give us a first look at it.

With the start of volume production of the Tesla Semi finally expected toward the end of the year, Tesla is starting to plan for ways to charge these trucks on the roads.

Tesla already built such a station, sometimes referred to as Megacharger, but it is located next to Gigafactory Nevada and it’s meant for the automaker’s internal fleet of Tesla Semi trucks.

We have also seen Tesla deploy a mobile Megacharger last year.

Now, Tesla is looking to deploy its first permanent public Megacharger station, according to a permit application uncovered by @MarcoRPi1:

As you can see from the site plan, Tesla is planning for 12 stalls with Megachargers that can accommodate the trucks and their trailers.

Tesla is also planning “a 1,600 sqft. amenity building with a lounge, vending machines, restrooms, and parking for staff.”

The planned Megacharger is going to be located at 19300 S Hamilton Ave, near the city of Carson in the greater Los Angeles area:

It is strategically located along the popular 405 and 110 corridors as well as near the port of Long Beach.

As the name implies, the Megacharger is expected to be capable of charging at over 1 MW. Tesla says that a Tesla Semi can recover 70 percent of its 500-mile range in 30 minutes of charging.

Tesla is currently building the first volume production line for the Tesla Semi at a new factory next to Gigafactory Nevada.

Production is expected to start late this year and ramp up to volume production next year.

Currently, there are a few dozens Tesla Semi trucks in operations, mainly in Tesla’s internal fleet, but also with a handful of customers.