Tesla is giving a year of free supercharging to new Model 3 and Y buyers, as it tries to ramp up sales and reach its 500,000-vehicle delivery target for 2020

• Tesla is offering free supercharging in the US if you buy a Model 3 or Y vehicle before the end of the year.
• The deal was first reported by Electrek, and was confirmed by a Tesla sales representative to Fox Business and Teslarati.
• The offer comes as Tesla aims to ramp up both production and sales to achieve its target of 500,000 deliveries in 2020. It needs to deliver more than 181,000 vehicles in the fourth quarter.
• Depending on fourth-quarter sales, Tesla could turn its first-ever annual profit.

Tesla is offering free supercharging to anyone who buys its Model 3 and Y vehicles in the US, as it tries to reach more than 180,000 sales in the final quarter.

US customers who buy a Model 3 or Y vehicle from Tesla before December 31 will get free access to its supercharging network for a year, Electrek first reported. The news was confirmed by a Tesla sales representative to Fox Business and Teslarati.

At Tesla sites where it charges by the kilowatt-hour (kwh), supercharging costs about $0.28 per kwh, equivalent to between $7 and $8.50 per 100 miles of driving in a Model 3 or Y, Fox Business reported.

According to Teslarati, customers can activate their free 365-day charging during the first two weeks of January, but noted the offer only applies to cars purchased from inventory, not special orders. The publication cited a conversation with a sales representative.

Electrek reported that the offer doesn't apply to the $35,000 standard range Model 3, referring to an internal memo.

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"Effective December 12 to December 31, all undelivered Model 3s and Model Y vehicles (excluding Model 3 Standard Range) that deliver by December 31 will receive one year of Free Supercharging," the memo said, per Electrek.

Tesla did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

Tesla operates a network of more than 1,800 Supercharger stations, and more than 16,500 individual chargers, across the world.

Tesla is ramping up sales and production as it reaches the year-end

The push for sales comes as Tesla continues to target 500,000 deliveries in 2020.

Consumers cut back spending on cars during the pandemic, and Tesla's sales in the first half of 2020 dropped 15% from the second half of 2019. To reach its 500,000 deliveries goal, the automaker needs to sell around 181,650 vehicles in the final three months of the year - 30% more than the third quarter.

Demand from China could help Tesla potentially exceed its annual goal, Wedbush's Dan Ives, a Wall Street tech analyst, said Monday. The automaker sold roughly 22,000 Model 3 vehicles in China in November, and if this momentum continues, Tesla would likely hit its target, Ives said.

CEO Elon Musk noted in a staff email on Friday seen by CNBC that demand was "quite a bit higher than production this quarter" as he urged employees to ramp up manufacturing as much as possible for the rest of 2020.

In an earnings call in October, Tesla acknowledged that the goal has "become more difficult," but said it could reach the target if it produces more Model Y and Shanghai vehicles, as well as making its logistics and delivery more efficient.

Depending on fourth-quarter sales, Tesla could turn its first-ever annual profit. In October, the company blew past analyst estimates as it posted its most profitable quarter ever, marking Tesla's fifth consecutive profitable quarter.