Total Rs 800 Crores For 7,432 Fast-charging EV Stations All Over India Has Been Sanctioned By The Govt.

Total Rs 800 Crores For 7,432 Fast-charging EV Stations In All Over India Has Been Sanctioned By The Govt.

There will be 7,432 public fast-charging EV stations installed nationwide, which will cost Rs 800 crores by India’s public sector oil firms, the Ministry of Heavy Industries announced.

The ministry has given three OMCs—Indian Oil Corp. Ltd., Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd., and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd.—a first installment totaling Rs 560 crore, or 70% of the total amount, for the installation and commissioning of upstream infrastructure and charging equipment of EV public charging stations at corresponding retail outlets across the country.

According to a statement from the ministry, the installation must be completed by March 2024.

There are currently 6,586 charging stations spread out across the country.

The press statement stated that the installation of the 7,432 additional public charging stations will significantly boost the EV charging ecosystem and that the charging capacity would be used for electric 2-wheeler, 4-wheeler, light commercial vehicles, and minibus.

Most estimates show that the number of EVs in the country is steadily increasing. The expansion would be evident across categories, including 2-wheeler, 3- wheeler, and 4- wheeler, and passenger vehicles, even if some sectors, like 2- wheeler and 3-Wheels, would have larger sales than, for instance, electric buses.

According to the Ministry of Heavy Industry, financial support of up to 80% has been allowed for the establishment of upstream infrastructure. These follow recommendations made by a committee under the direction of the director general of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) to increase the viability of the construction of public charging infrastructure.

The recommendations included supporting the upstream infrastructure, which typically accounts for up to 60% of the total cost of installing a public EV charging station and includes distribution transformers, AC distribution boxes, circuit breakers, isolators, protection equipment, tubular or PCC mounting structures, fencing, and civil work.

According to the ministry, the upstream infrastructure consists of the sum of money that Charge Point Operators must pay to DISCOMs in order to secure an electrical connection.

The ministry claims that lowering the initial cost will make installing charging stations simpler.

According to the administration, the previous 70% subsidy on EV Supply Equipment would remain in effect.

The measure, according to Minister of Heavy Industries Mahendra Nath Pandey, will strengthen India’s electric vehicle ecosystem and encourage more people to use greener forms of transportation.

He further stated that in order to achieve Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Net Zero vision, the government is dedicated to developing environmentally friendly mobility options and lowering national carbon emissions.

The action will build a strong, more openly available network of charging infrastructure in India. It supports the expansion of the Indian automotive industry and the government’s initiatives to cut carbon emissions and promote sustainable transportation options, added Pandey.

These quick-charging stations will be installed in all major cities, cities with a population of one million or more, smart cities, cities in mountainous areas across the nation, and on roads and expressways nationwide.

According to the ministry, this will give EV users a smooth and practical charging experience that will significantly lessen their worries about the range and charging time throughout their intra-city and, more critically, their inter-city, long-distance excursions.

Both fast and slow charges will be available at the EV stations. The proposed number of guns for both fast and slow chargers eligible for program subsidies has been cut in half to lower the cost of setting up charging stations funded by the program.

By granting OMCs a subsidy grant, the government will assist them in completing their goal of installing 22,000 EV charging stations across the country by 2024.

Problems EV faces with charging stations

When constructing EV charging stations, operators face difficulties due to a lack of available land. MHI discussed this issue with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas to see if it would be feasible to install charging stations at the retail locations of the oil marketing companies while keeping this obstacle in mind (OMCs). The OMCs have enough room on the grounds of their retail locations to erect charging stations.

How long it takes to charge a car is one of the main obstacles to the widespread use of EVs. OMCs CCS-II type EV charging stations provide EV owners with quick and efficient charging, especially for those searching for on-the-go top-up charging. They will be at least 50 KW in power output.

With the growing number of EVs, charging stations for these EVs need a push as well in India.

Since 2020, EV sales in India have consistently broken records, demonstrating a shift in public opinion toward electric transportation.

Through programs like FAME1 and FAME2, the government has been assisting the EV industry with a focus on charging infrastructure.

By 2030, the government wants to electrify 70% of all commercial vehicles, 30% of private automobiles, 40% of buses, and 80% of two- and three-wheeler sales.

Even if EVs are becoming more widely used and accepted as part of a larger mobility network, the ecosystem surrounding charging stations has been taking its time to grow. But there are now more than five times as many charging stations as there were just a year ago.

This shows the promise that this industry provides for the country’s growing EV user population as well as the cause of clean mobility.

As EV adoption increases, notably in the two-wheeler segment, the government is currently confronted with a massive gap and the immense issue of creating a broad network of public stations and community charging stations in key metro regions.

10,000 public charging stations will probably be available nationwide by the end of 2025, predicts Counterpoint Research.

The country may need 20.5 lakh charging stations by 2030, a huge endeavor that will also necessitate a jump in EV sales.

In India, the market share of electric passenger cars is expected to reach more than 6% by 2025. Three-wheelers, which have a 4% market share in terms of EV adoption, are in the first place, followed by two-wheelers (3.5%), and passenger vehicles (1.3%), according to Soumen Mandal, senior research analyst IoT, automotive and devices ecosystem at Counterpoint.

Hero Electric’s CEO, Sohinder Gill told a source that the company is concentrating on enhancing the EV charging network by collaborating with many EV tech firms like Statiq, BOLT, Charzer, Massive Mobility, and Log9 Materials to build over 1 lakh charging points throughout India.

Moreover, Gill stated they aim to tap into that infrastructure in terms of joint vehicle development there, employing sensibility from the Indian market and our R&D capabilities for the electrification of the mobility segment in India.

In order to “charge up” the ecosystem for charging stations, it is also expected that the government will enhance and sustain its policy stimulus in the years to come.

The central government and state governments will take all necessary steps to ensure that there are enough charging station facilities for the rising number of EV users in the country, including lowering import duties for inputs and equipment, allowing cheaper land leasing, capping charging station rentals, providing financial support to lower the cost of capex in the early stages of setting up the infrastructure, and more.

Edited by Prakriti Arora