In this Saturday, June 8, 2019, photograph, a Model S sedan charges at a Tesla supercharging station in Silverthorne, Colorado.
David Zalubowski / AP
Tesla plans to build an enormous electric vehicle supercharger station off of Interstate 5 in Sutherlin, Oregon.
With a population of just over 8,000, Sutherlin might not seem like the obvious choice for the largest supercharger station outside of California.
“Other than this being the greatest small town in the United States, we happen to be strategically located almost exactly halfway between San Francisco and Seattle,” says Sutherlin City Manager Jerry Gillham.
Gillham explains the station will expose Sutherlin to outsiders who might not otherwise explore the small city. Because of the potential for marketing, the city plans to put up a billboard next to the station advertising its attractions.
The Sutherlin station will have 51 charging stalls. Springfield has the current largest supercharger station in Oregon, with 14.
Tesla says superchargers can charge a car up to 200 miles in 15 minutes. Right now, the chargers are only available for Tesla vehicles, but the company is considering a way to make them available to all electric vehicles in select countries.
The station is set to open in 2023, according to Tesla.