Tesla announced an expansion program for their Supercharger network in Europe connecting the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. The first European Supercharger location was opened in Norway last year.

The new network is more relevant to the European customers, as they will enable Model S owners to take trips on the German Autobahn and to destinations in the Alps and elsewhere. The stations are strategically-placed on well-travelled routes to provide the most convenience for the customers.

In Germany alone, Superchargers connect Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Munich. They also connect the German network to Amsterdam, Zurich, and Innsbruck. In the Netherlands, energized routes connect Amsterdam to Cologne and Brussels, and in Switzerland the stations connect Zurich and Geneva.

Tesla says by the end of March 2014, 50 percent of the German population will live within 320km of a Supercharger, and 100 percent of the population will be covered by the end of the year. They do however gives us a heads up that these are “forward-looking statements” that are subject to risks and uncertainties. But they’ve always kept their word before, so no reason to doubt them this time.

Tesla’s Supercharger network is a clever solution to get round the problem of charging electric cars. Instead of providing you with a fast charger, Tesla launched this global network (with 81 stations now active in the U.S. alone) which provides up to 120 kilowatts of DC (Direct Current) power directly to the Model S battery using special cables that bypass the onboard charging equipment. It is a lot quicker than any fast charging system known to man, but even so, it takes like an hour to replenish the batteries in the Model S.