How India aims to strengthen the charging infrastructure for EVs

With rapid headways in electric car technology, electric vehicles (EVs) are getting cheaper, efficient and high on range performance. Though EVs make for an insignificant percentage of the total global car sales presently, the figures are rising fast as more buyers brave cost disadvantages in favour of sustainability and long-term savings. Auto incumbents are jumping into the EV bandwagon with hybrid and all-electric models offering sophisticated features and more miles per charge. But, what about the charging infrastructure to support the growing power requirements? Thankfully, the Government of India has lately come up with a clear policy to establish a supportive charging infrastructure for EVs. Here’s what all you need to know. 

On December 14, 2018, the Ministry Of Power (MoP) released an official document, outlining a road map towards the adoption of electric technology at scale. The focus is on establishing a network of over 5000 EV mobility charging stations initially in cities with 4 million or more residents. The selected cities include Ahmadabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Surat, besides four major cosmopolitans - Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. The MoP has plans for rapid roll out with elimination of licenses for operating charging stations. A host of additional perks for EV owners are also in the pipeline, notably the allotment of special green number plates.  

Each listed city will feature an EV charging station in 3 kilometres of a grid, especially in high traffic areas. To support intra-city travel, the highways will have a charging station at a distance of every 25 kilometres. Corridors connecting megacities have been recognized to set up EV charging stations for private and passenger cars, as well as heavy-duty commercial vehicles. Provisions for private charging stations are also there, allowing EV owners to set up a station at home, workplace or elsewhere. The EV charging stations are granted freedom to access electricity from any power company via an open access system. Upon applying for the connection, the power company will prioritize applicant EV station for an electric connection.

The existing fuel stations will be prioritized and incentivized for setting up EV stations to power the future electric cars. The company-owned filling stations will be put at a higher priority vis-à-vis the privately-owned ones. The filling stations are mandated to put together an elaborate infrastructure to operate an EV station. For safety reasons, setting up a 'firewall' is essential to separate the conventional charging area from the EV ones. While anyone can apply for within-city EV stations, the highway EV stations are reserved for central public sector enterprises.  

The circular also carries provision for subsidies to facilitate a rapid roll-out of EV charging stations. In fact, for setting up highway EV stations, the circular provides up to 100% subsidy on expenses incurred on transformer and charger.