Tesla to build 400 charging points in 120 cities across China thanks to major new partnership

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) is set to build 400 electric car charging points in 120 cities across China. This will be done in partnership with China Unicom (NYSE:CHU; HKG:0762), the country’s second largest telco in terms of 3G subscribers.

The deal will also see Tesla build 20 supercharging stations in China that can charge the vehicle as much as 16 times faster than a conventional power outlet, according to a report today from Bloomberg.

Xinhua adds that China Unicom “will provide space for the construction and some basic services, while Tesla will be responsible for the charging facilities, according to the plan.” The stations will be free for Tesla owners. Tesla’s proprietary plugs mean that other electric vehicles cannot use the same stations.

See: China fails to amp up electric car sales, only 6,900 domestic EVs sold in 2013

Tesla currently has only 17 supercharging stations in three Chinese cities, accompanied by 170 small “destination chargers” in over 30 cities in the country. Tesla expanded sales to a total of 38 Chinese cities earlier this month after initially launching only in Beijing and Shanghai earlier in the year.

Many of Tesla’s charging points are at major shopping malls (pictured below) thanks to an earlier deal with InTime Retail (HKG:1833) and SOHO (HKG:0410).

(Source: Bloomberg)