Tesla “hoping” to open in Croatia, Serbia in early 2020 – Elon Musk

U.S. automotive and energy company Tesla, Inc. is “hoping to open in Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia & most of Eastern Europe early next year,” its co-founder and CEO Elon Musk has tweeted.

“Finally, we will do Nikola Tesla proud by having his cars in his countries of origin!” – according to Musk’s tweet.

Hoping to open in Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia & most of Eastern Europe early next year. Finally, we will do Nikola Tesla proud by having his cars in his countries of origin!

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 23, 2019

Though Musk did not specify it, it is assumed he referred to the opening of Tesla Inc.’s stores in these countries.

According to Tesla, Inc.’s website, Croatia already has Tesla Superchargers, whose installation the company also expects “soon” in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Greece.

EV infrastructure development uneven in SEE

Serbia has a poor track record with electric vehicles (EVs) and EV charging infrastructure.

The country currently has only about 30 EV charging stations, five of which are fast-charging stations along the highway routes, which can service up to three vehicles at a time.

Serbia has a meager 148 registered electric vehicles (EV), more than a half of which are electric cars and the rest vehicles such as buses, trolley buses, and motorcycles.

The situation is similar in other non-EU member states in South-East Europe (SEE).

EU countries, including Croatia, Romania, and Bulgaria, as well as Slovenia, have far more developed networks of EV charging stations than non-member states in the region.