Tesla Supercharger station approved for Wenatchee near WinCo Foods

Despite more than 80,000 Tesla Superchargers existing worldwide, the closest Supercharger stations from Wenatchee are about 20 miles away in Entiat and Leavenworth. Until now.

In early April, the city of Wenatchee and Kellogg Shopco Properties confirmed that WinCo foods applied for building and right-of-way permits to build a Supercharger station in Wenatchee in February. The plans were approved in March.

Jim White, energy conservation engineer principal for Chelan County PUD, said "Tesla is in the process of installing Superchargers in Wenatchee, near the WinCo store on Maple (Street) and Wenatchee Avenue."

Daniel Kellogg, manager of Kellogg Shopco Properties, which owns the building and property WinCo is leasing, said the Idaho-based supermarket chain initiated the request for an eight-stall Tesla Supercharger station in the parking lot.

Tesla and WinCo did not respond to requests for comment.

White said residents are unlikely to use the new charging stations since it's more convenient and cost-effective to charge at home because electricity is relatively inexpensive in the region. Chelan County PUD's residential Rate Schedule 1 was $16.60 to $22.30 for the basic charge as of this week, with a $0.0280 cents per kilowatt-hour energy charge. These rates are set to increase slightly starting June 1. The state average energy charge is 13.81 cents per kilowatt-hour, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Residents also can also use one of the free Level 2 charging stations around town.

As for Tesla Superchargers, it costs an average of 40 cents per kilowatt-hour.

"My guess is that most people using the WinCo chargers will be drivers from outside the community," White said.

Randy Brooks, volunteer chair of Plug-In NCW, said Supercharger station installation seems to be heavily based on tourism and long-distance driving demand. Plug-In NCW is a non-profit organization focused on helping educate the public and develop electric vehicle infrastructure in the region, according to its website. Plug-In NCW had a precursor organization in 2005.

"Leavenworth got the first Supercharger in the region," Brooks said. "And Tesla, you know, chose locations based on where their cars are, and where people travel with their cars. And of course, Leavenworth is a huge tourist attraction."

A Chelan resident and Tesla owner, Brooks said there should be more fast Level 3 charging stations like Tesla Superchargers. Competitors Blink Charging and ChargePoint provide several Level 3 charging stations in Wenatchee and East Wenatchee.

A proposal to install an eight-stall Supercharger station failed in 2018 in Chelan, according to city documents.

"One area that does need additional chargers would be Lake Chelan. Entiat is the only Tesla Supercharger (station) between the Canadian border and Wenatchee," White said.

Despite the limited Supercharger options near Wenatchee, there are stations available for road trips to Seattle, Spokane and across the border to Canada.

"For Wenatchee residents, the most important Superchargers are the ones located away from town in Cle Elum, North Bend, Ritzville, Spokane and Monitor," White said.

The estimated timeline for completion of the Supercharger station in Wenatchee was not disclosed as of mid-May.

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