Six charging units, on the Havelock Street side of the car park near the council offices and The Cube, will be opened on Thursday.

A station at Goulburn will be simultaneously unveiled, allowing Tesla owners to cover Melbourne to Sydney.

The cars have batteries ranging in power from 60 to 90 kilowatts with charging times from 20 to 75 minutes.

Wodonga council chief executive Patience Harrington expects there will be a boost for traders, such as The Cube cafe, while motorists wait for their Teslas to charge.

"We see it as promoting business in our central business area and that's going to be a huge advantage,” Ms Harrington said.

She said Tesla was leasing the six parking bays but ratepayers would not be told how much the city was receiving because it was "commercial in confidence".

The US firm's Australian spokesman, Heath Walker, talked up drop-bys.

"We think with the passion people have with our vehicles and the fact that are chargers are free to use there will be a resurgence of the road trip and it will reintroduce people to country towns like Goulburn and Wodonga,” Mr Walker said.

Motor trader Martin Baker, who pioneered electric car sales in Albury-Wodonga, is disappointed the chargers are limited to Tesla models.

"I think it's a little odd that they are only supporting one brand of car that is not supplied locally,” Mr Baker said.

Mr Walker said the sharing of chargers may happen in the future "if the right company was involved and if it was for the right reasons".

Ms Harrington said Wodonga would welcome other charging stations at car parks in the city with Tesla not having exclusive rights.

Mr Baker sells a hybrid electric-petrol Mitsubishi Outlander, but said there had been "not much" demand for it with five sold on the Border in the last 12 months.

"You usually find the ones that are buying them have got a solar electric system at their house, so they're effectively running them for free," Mr Baker said.

He said he had driven one of his Outlanders, which charge through a normal socket, from Albury to Merimbula without repowering.

Mr Baker does not believe petrol prices are the key to going electric, suggesting buyers were generally motivated by eco-friendliness.