Tesla has added a notably faster charging stop to New Brunswick’s EV network, but the newest hardware has arrived with an old-fashioned way of calculating the bill. The company’s new Moncton Supercharger at the Granite Centre features eight V4 stalls capable of delivering up to 325 kW to compatible vehicles, placing some of Tesla’s newest charging equipment beside the Trans-Canada Highway. Yet drivers are still charged according to how long they remain plugged in rather than the amount of electricity their batteries receive. That contrast makes Moncton more than another dot on Tesla’s charging map. It highlights how rapidly charging technology is advancing while Canadian measurement rules, provincial electricity laws and different utility structures continue to shape what drivers actually pay at the plug.
A New High-Power Stop on the Trans-Canada Highway
The Moncton site opened at 50 Granite Drive in the Granite Centre, adding eight V4 Supercharger stalls and becoming Tesla’s seventh Supercharger location in New Brunswick. Its position just off the Trans-Canada Highway is significant because Moncton sits on one of the principal road corridors connecting New Brunswick with Nova Scotia and routes heading west toward Quebec. Existing Tesla locations in the province include Aulac, Lincoln, Quispamsis, Saint-Léonard, Salisbury and Woodstock. For long-distance EV drivers, another high-capacity stop can provide an important alternative when existing sites are busy, unavailable or simply poorly positioned for a particular journey.
The hardware also represents a substantial jump from many older Tesla installations in the province. The V4 equipment is advertised at up to 325 kW for compatible vehicles, compared with 150-kW equipment still operating at some established New Brunswick Superchargers. Construction in Moncton began in 2025, and Tesla’s network is not finished expanding in the province. Work also began in August on another location at Fredericton’s Regent Mall, which would increase the provincial total again when commissioned.
325 kW Is a Ceiling, Not a Guaranteed Charging Speed
A 325-kW label can make a charging stop sound almost instantaneous, but the figure describes the maximum power the equipment can potentially deliver under suitable conditions. The vehicle still determines how much power it can accept. Battery temperature, state of charge, battery chemistry and the vehicle’s charging architecture all influence what appears on the charging screen. An EV arriving with a warm, depleted battery may initially charge rapidly and then progressively reduce its power draw as the battery fills. Another vehicle may never approach the station’s maximum because its own hardware has a lower peak charging limit.
Natural Resources Canada describes DC fast charging as typically capable of bringing an EV to roughly an 80% charge in about 25 to 30 minutes, while explicitly warning that actual results vary by vehicle, battery, temperature and other conditions. That distinction is particularly important in Moncton because charging speed affects not only how long someone waits but also which time-pricing tier applies. The station can supply exceptionally high power, but the practical experience will depend heavily on the car that arrives and the condition of its battery.
The Price Still Runs on a Clock
Despite the new equipment, Moncton does not currently use the straightforward dollars-per-kilowatt-hour system drivers increasingly encounter elsewhere in Canada. Tesla owners are charged according to charging-power bands. Reported pricing begins at $0.35 per minute when the vehicle is drawing no more than 60 kW and rises to $1.85 per minute when charging above 180 kW. Compatible non-Tesla vehicles face higher reported rates, ranging from $0.50 per minute at the lowest band to $2.60 per minute above 180 kW. Tesla says its per-minute Supercharger system uses four charging-speed tiers so the price changes according to the power a vehicle is receiving.
That arrangement means a charging session has two moving variables: time and charging speed. A car may begin in the highest tier when its battery is low, then move into lower-power tiers as charging tapers. Drivers therefore cannot determine the cost simply by looking at the number of kilowatt-hours they need. Tesla also notes that Supercharger prices can change and that current site-specific pricing is displayed through its vehicle navigation system or app, making an up-to-date price check particularly useful before a long trip.
Why New Brunswick Is Different
The unusual billing method reflects an overlap between federal measurement rules and New Brunswick’s electricity framework. Measurement Canada allows public charging operators to bill by the kilowatt-hour when appropriate metering requirements are satisfied. Its temporary-dispensation program permits eligible Level 3 fast-charging equipment to use energy-based billing before the permanent approval regime is fully implemented, provided operators meet specified accuracy, registration and consumer-protection requirements. Across Canada, thousands of public charging ports have already moved into energy-based billing under that evolving framework.
New Brunswick adds another layer. Section 72 of the provincial Electricity Act generally provides that no person other than the provincial electricity corporation may sell or supply electricity to a consumer, subject to limited exceptions. EV industry publications reporting on the Moncton opening identify that provincial structure as the reason Tesla continues using time-based pricing there. NB Power’s own eCharge network also retains time-based fast-charging rates: its 2026-27 schedule lists $30 an hour for a 100-kW charger and $20 an hour for a 50-kW charger. The result is a provincial charging market where the minute remains unusually important.
Per-Minute Pricing Changes the Economics of a Fast Charge
Charging by time creates a different set of incentives from charging by energy. Under a kilowatt-hour model, two drivers purchasing the same amount of electricity can, in principle, pay the same energy charge even if one vehicle takes longer to accept it. Under time billing, a vehicle’s charging performance becomes part of the cost equation. Cold batteries, a high starting state of charge or a conservative charging curve can all extend the session. Tesla’s tiered system partly addresses that issue by charging less per minute at lower power levels, rather than applying one flat minute rate regardless of speed.
Even so, the customer is still purchasing time rather than receiving a simple price for each unit of energy. That can make comparisons between charging networks more complicated. Measurement Canada has explicitly supported the broader transition toward kilowatt-hour billing because verified energy measurement provides consumers with a clearer basis for what they are buying. The distinction becomes more noticeable as chargers become faster: a 325-kW station can deliver energy at a dramatically different pace from an older 50-kW unit, making both charging curves and pricing bands important parts of the final bill.
Moncton Arrives During a Broader New Brunswick Charging Buildout
Tesla’s expansion is occurring alongside a larger push to increase public charging capacity across New Brunswick. In early August, the provincial government announced that more than $6 million from its 2026-27 Climate Change Fund would support three EV-charging initiatives. Of that amount, $5 million was earmarked for expanding the NB Power eCharge network with 16 new fast chargers providing 29 charging ports. The province said the focus would include areas where private operators may not currently see a sufficient commercial case to build infrastructure on their own.
That public investment gives the Moncton opening a wider context. Tesla is adding high-powered infrastructure along commercially attractive transportation routes, while government-backed programs are trying to reduce gaps in places that may be less profitable. Natural Resources Canada has previously funded dozens of electric charging installations in New Brunswick through federal infrastructure programs as well. Taken together, the projects indicate that the province’s network is becoming denser even if pricing and connector arrangements remain fragmented. For drivers, additional stations matter because redundancy can be nearly as valuable as outright charging speed during busy travel periods.
Non-Tesla Drivers Gain Another Charging Option
The Moncton Supercharger is not restricted to Tesla vehicles. The V4 site is reported as available to compatible EVs from other manufacturers using the necessary NACS adapter, although Tesla advises non-Tesla drivers to check its app for vehicle compatibility, station access and adapter requirements. That makes the opening more relevant than it would have been during the years when the Supercharger network functioned mainly as a proprietary advantage for Tesla owners.
The industry around the connector has also changed. Tesla’s North American Charging Standard has been formalized by SAE International as the J3400 family of standards, covering the physical connector as well as broader electrical, functional and safety requirements. Major automakers began committing to the connector earlier in the decade, and newer EVs are increasingly being designed around it while adapters provide a bridge for existing CCS-equipped vehicles. V4 Supercharger hardware also uses longer cables than previous generations, an important practical improvement because charging-port placement varies widely among brands. Moncton therefore expands both Tesla’s network and the increasingly shared North American fast-charging ecosystem.
The Next Charging Battle May Be About Billing, Not Speed
The Moncton station shows how charging infrastructure can improve dramatically without every part of the ownership experience moving at the same pace. Eight 325-kW-capable stalls address the physical question of where and how quickly EVs can charge. The per-minute billing structure raises a separate question about how electricity should be sold to motorists. Measurement Canada continues developing permanent standards for EV charging meters, with its temporary program allowing qualifying Level 3 equipment placed into service before 2030 to participate in kilowatt-hour billing when its requirements are met.
For New Brunswick drivers, however, federal meter approval is only part of the picture because the provincial electricity framework remains relevant. No publicly announced date identified in the sources reviewed for this piece establishes when the new Moncton Supercharger might switch to kilowatt-hour pricing. In the meantime, motorists have a straightforward practical task: check the station’s current rate before plugging in and remember that the vehicle’s charging performance can influence the bill. Moncton now has faster hardware; the economics of using it remain distinctly New Brunswick.
