India is slowly building up its infrastructure to encourage switching to electric vehicles. And the latest effort comes from Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) which has joined hands with Sun Mobility group to offer a first-of-kind battery swapping service in the country. This has been unveiled in Chandigarh this week, which allows electric vehicles (EVs) to adopt Fast charging technology and get their vehicles fully charged in quick time.
Since IOC has the geographical advantage with thousands of fuel pumps spread across the country, Sun Mobility has offered its expertise in the EV space to come up with this solution. Initially, the charging service will cater to the public transport system, with auto, buses and e-rickshaw getting the first dips on using them. In the coming months, you’ll have similar stations set up across 20 to 25 cities in the country, using IOC’s network.
It has been pointed the stations will have 14 batteries, equipped with a touch screen to swap the units and electricity sub-meter to keep a check on the reading. Charging standards are fragmented right now which makes fast chargers less effective. But with battery swaps, auto or e-rickshaw drivers can reduce their charging time, which allows them to ply longer hours of service on the road.
Sun Mobility has worked on an extensive range of EV solutions and battery swapping network could go a long way in helping people change their apprehension (driving range, battery network) about buying EVs in the country.
Earlier this year at the EV Expo in Delhi, we came across various manufacturers are network providers who’re looking to tie up with organisations and use their expertise with people who offer strong ground support. Eventually, these stations could be offered in hundreds, which makes buying an EV quite viable.
MG Motors is one such car manufacturer which has partnered with Tata Power to help them set up DC car chargers at select dealerships for its ZS EV car owners.