India Gets More Serious About EVs — Increases Public Charging Stations 9× in Two Years – CleanTechnica

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Several years ago, India’s prime minister said that India was aiming to be the first all-EV nation. That seemed a little bonkers at the time, since India was way behind other countries in vehicle electrification, but it was a positive sign. But then, not much happened. India is certainly not going to be the first fully electric nation. However, it seems to be getting more serious about EVs now and is bringing good press.

The country has installed nearly 6,000 EV fast charging stations along its highways. Its Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) announced last year that it would be getting 7,432 public fast-charging stations installed, and these 5,833 along highways are part of that number.

Notably, these stations are being funded and organized by three “Oil Marketing Companies.” Those companies are Indian Oil (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum (BPCL), and Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL). Note that these are public sector oil marketing companies under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG).

The ministry writes: “In addition, Ministry of Heavy Industries has set up a target of 5833 EV charging stations along Highways out of total 7432 EV charging stations through three Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) under Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoP&NG). The state wise list of these 5833 EV charging stations is given in Annexure-B. A capital subsidy of Rs. 800 Crore has been provided to these Oil Companies towards establishment of 7432 EV charging stations.”

Overall, looking at all charging stations (not just public fast chargers), India has grown from 1,800 two years ago to 16,347 today, a greater than nine-fold increase. It’s great progress, but even that pales in comparison to what’s needed. It’s been estimated that India needs 1.32 million charging stations by 2030. The country’s EV market is supposed to be about one-third of its overall new-vehicle market by then, and 50 million EVs are supposed to be on India’s roads. “To achieve a ratio of 1-40 EVs to charging infrastructure, India will need to install over 400,000 chargers annually, totalling 1.32 million chargers by 2030,” Deccan Chronicle writes. In that regard, well, progress is still far too slow.

“India’s EV market is expected to reach $48.6 billion by 2030, driven by surging demand, particularly in the two-wheeler (2W) and three-wheeler (3W) segments. The four-wheeler (4W) market also shows strong potential, with new model launches on the horizon. Factors such as lower total cost of ownership, convenience, sustainability, a growing supplier network, product customization, and government incentives like the FAME-II scheme are all contributing to this rapid adoption,” The Economic Times of India writes.

Notably, India needs a very diverse charging network to match its vehicle split. There are millions of two-wheelers and three-wheelers in use every day, and those use slower AC charging, whereas electric cars driving on highways, electric trucks shipping goods around the country, and electric buses require fast chargers. It’s an enormous effort that requires a lot of public sector and private sector involvement and vision. At least we now have some clear signs of progress. It just needs to speed up.

China is already reaching 50% plugin vehicle market share in its auto market, and that may be speeding up now. India isn’t anywhere close to that.