1. West Bengal floats tender for 205 EV charging stations.

West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Co. Ltd. has floated a tender for setting up 205 EV charging stations under PPP model. The charging stations will be set up on state government land but maintained by private operators. Revenue will be shared. Investment, operation & maintenance will be done by the private player. Of the 205 stations, 40 will be set up along highways and the remaining 165 in cities & towns. The initial contract period will be of 10 years with an option to extend. The state electricity regulatory body has set a tariff of Rs.6.98 per unit for EV charging stations.

West Bengal’s EV Policy aims to have 1 million electric vehicles in the state by 2030.

2. Ather plans 1400 fast-chargers by 2023.

Ather Energy plans to install 1400 fast-charging stations in India by the end of 2023. The company has installed 580 points so far. The company has strategically installed its chargers and 60% of these are in tier 2&3 cities. The fast charging network is accessible by electric two-wheelers & electric cars and free charging is being offered to everyone till the end of December 2022. The charging network is supported by the Ather Grid app which allows EV owners to locate the nearest charging stations.

Ather has tied-up with EV charging companies like Park+ and Magenta and has also signed an agreement with Karnataka Govt. The company is also working with housing societies & RWAs to set up charging facilities in apartments.

3. Bharat Petroleum and EV charging corridors.

Bharat Petroleum (BPCL) will establish 2 EV fast-charging corridors, at Bangalore-Chennai highway & Bangalore-Mysore-Coorg highway, in the next 6 months. There will be a fast-charging station (25kW) every 100km.

More such fast-charging EV corridors are being planned in South India. BPCL will also convert 7000 of its conventional petrol pumps into energy stations to facilitate multiple fueling options (including EV charging, CNG, biodiesel etc) across the country.

4. Maharashtra Government introduces protocols for EV charging stations in the state.

Maharashtra Government has announced new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for ensuring safety of people and EV charging stations. As per the SOP, housing societies, malls, residential buildings, office complexes, restaurants and hotels are allowed to set up EV charging stations as long as they comply with safety and performance protocols. All charging stations must also be installed, serviced & maintained by licensed electrical contractors in Maharashtra. In multi-storey car parkings, the chargers should ideally be located on the top (open-air), to reduce fire hazard for the entire structure. Where multiple chargers are in use, there should be prominent notices at each charging point indicating if it is suitable for AC or DC charging. EV charging should not be undertaken within a 10 metre radius of any transformer, flammable liquid store, LPG tank etc. Fire detection alarm will be a necessity.

Due to Maharashtra being a state that receives heavy rainfall, all charging stations are required to have power sockets located at a designated safe height above the flood level in the area. Parking places should also clearly mark out spots for EVs. These parking spots should be no further than five metres from the charger. Parking of any non-EV vehicle in EV-marked spots should be prohibited. In housing societies, EV charging spots should be located away from children's play area.

5. EV charging plans in the newly launched ‘Uttar Pradesh Electric Vehicle Manufacturing and Mobility Policy 2022’.

To enhance EV charging & battery swapping infrastructure in the state, UP government will promote the development of EV charging stations every 25kms along Expressways/ Highways. The state will also promote charging & battery swapping facilities in public parking spaces, metro stations, bus depots, petrol pumps, government offices, educational & health institutes, shopping malls, housing societies etc. For this, the state government will provide a subsidy of up to Rs.10 lakh per station for the first 2000 EV charging stations. A subsidy of up to Rs.5 lakh per station will also be granted for the first 1000 battery swapping stations. The state government will also provide land to service providers for setting up public charging infrastructure on lease for 10 years.

For complete EV charging solutions, explore the Kazam website.