OVERCOMING FRAGMENTED EV CHARGING INFRASTRUCTURE

The EV charging infrastructure is fragmented and needs some doing. There is hope, writes Upendra Kasbekar.

- Upendra Kasbekar

The impetus to attain 30 per cent EV parc by 2030 can’t be attained without the requisite infrastructure being put into place. Range anxiety is a real world issue especially for inter-city travel. There is progress made on end of the spectrum while on the other end challenges persist. The lack of standardisation of charging ports continues to be dealt with in retrospect. The debate between urban and rural and the lack of a clear roadmap means there is work to be done. Averred Charles Nadar, the Founder of EVJoints, “Due to the fragmented nature of infrastructure, EV users often need multiple apps to locate charging stations, leading to low accessibility. During my customer interactions I learnt that it is a major reason for avoiding EVs especially for longer trips as end users don’t want to juggle between different apps, preferring traditional cars for such journeys.

Current state of charging infrastructure

India’s EV charging infrastructure is growing but remains in nascent stages. As of 2023, the country boasted of an estimated 1,800 publicly available EV charging stations, primarily concentrated in metropolitan cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. In March 2024, this number is pegged at 16,347. This number is significantly below par, especially given the government’s 30 per cent 2030 target. To meet a ratio of one EV per 40 charging stations, India would need to install over four lakh chargers annually, totalling 1.32 million chargers by 2030. The lack of a widespread charging network has been a critical barrier to the mass adoption of EVs in India in addition to the charge duration and thermal inefficiencies.