Mercedes-Benz’s 400kW EV chargers are coming to Starbucks

Mercedes-Benz and Starbucks are teaming up to install fast electric vehicle chargers at 100 coffee-slinging locations on Interstate 5, which runs along the West Coast from Canada to Mexico.

The new stations will be part of the German automaker’s $1 billion plan to build 2,000 new EV charging hubs across the globe. Its first station, complete with a swanky waiting area and 400kW charging speeds courtesy of ChargePoint, opened in Atlanta last year.

Now it looks like Mercedes is ready to embark on the next phase of its installations, with a primary focus on Starbucks locations along I-5. The two companies said in the announcement that they “share an ambition to identify additional opportunities in key markets, including core urban areas, charging deserts, and other critical travel corridors.”

Starbucks isn’t contributing to the costs of installation, just providing the space in its parking lots for the charging stalls and other equipment. And importantly, Mercedes isn’t shouldering the whole cost of the $1 billion project itself; 50 percent will be covered by MN8 Energy, an offshoot of Goldman Sachs Asset Management focused on solar power and energy storage.

The announcement comes at a time when most automakers are reconsidering some of their big EV plans in light of slower growth than initially expected. Mercedes said it would continue to sell gas-powered vehicles after 2030, after originally stating it would only sell EVs.

One of the main challenges to opening new charging stations is finding a willing real estate partner who can make room for all the needed equipment to enable DC fasting charging. In addition to plugs and charging stalls, most DC fast chargers also require space for other electronics, like transformers and load centers, which are stored on-site in weather-proof metal cabinets. Some of it can be large and cumbersome, and the charging provider needs plenty of space to make it feasible.

Charging an EV is much different from refueling a gas car. Whereas it can take less than five minutes to refill a gas tank, it can take up to an hour to recharge an EV battery, depending on the energy output of the charger and the size of the EV battery. 

That’s why Mercedes is siting its chargers at Starbucks. It’s a tacit acknowledgment that EV owners would rather have a latte and relax in a coffee shop than sit in their cars while they wait for their batteries to replenish.

Other automakers have had similar ideas. Volkswagen, which owns the EV charging company Electrify America, installs many of its chargers in big box store parking lots, like Walmart and Target. And in 2018, Tesla submitted plans to build a massive 62-stall Supercharger station in Santa Monica that features a restaurant and movie theater. (As of 2024, the site has yet to break ground.)

Mercedes isn’t the only automaker to seek out Starbucks as an EV charging partner. In 2022, the coffee giant teamed up with Volvo to announce the installation of 15 stations along highways that connect Seattle and Denver.