Seven major automakers, including Honda, said Wednesday that they will establish a joint venture to build an electric vehicle charging network in North America.
The group aims to counter U.S. EV giant Tesla, which holds 60% of the country's EV market.
The group also includes General Motors of the United States, Germany's BMW and Mercedes-Benz as well as U.S. and European auto giant Stellantis and South Korea's Hyundai Motor plus its affiliate, Kia.
The seven automakers hope to launch the new company by year-end after gaining regulatory approvals.
They aim to develop a new quick EV charger system that supports the North American Charging Standard (NACS), developed by Tesla, and the Combined Charging System (CCS), adopted by many other makers. The Japanese-developed standard called CHAdeMO will not be supported.
The group plans to install at least 30,000 chargers fully powered by renewable energy, hoping to open charging stations in the United States in summer next year and in Canada later.
GM, Ford Motor, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan Motor have announced their plans to launch EVs compatible with Tesla's NACS.