BPCL to build charging stations along Indian highways
India’s government-owned oil and gas company Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) has announced the launch of 30 kW EV charging stations on six highways in Western India.
Four of the highway sections included surround the city of Pune, covering the stretches to Aurangabad, Solapur, Nashik and Kolhapur. The other two stretches lie between Mumbai and Nashik, as well as Nashik and Shirdi. Using the charging stations will be done via a pay-per-use online service. The company had previously announced plans to build a charging network of 22,000 chargers by 2026.
“Maharashtra is among the top 4 Indian states, with most electric vehicle registrations, therefore setting up the Fast EV charging infrastructure on highway in Maharashtra will support in further growth of EV in the state,” said Akshay Wadhwa, Head (Retail) West, BPCL during the launch. Rakesh Kumar Sinha, BCPL state head of Maharashtra & Goa added: “We have the highest market share in the petrol & diesel. We are targeting a similar dominance in EV space as well, through rapid proliferation of fast chargers on Highway Corridors and in Urban Markets.”
India has been steadily ramping up EV infrastructure and production, particularly in the area of two-wheelers, for which a partnership between Hero and Zero was announced just at the beginning of the month, as well as the startup Ola Electric, which announced plans to build an electric scooter factory in Tamil Nadu in February. A major lithium reserve was also discovered in the north of the country earlier this year, which will certainly help ramp up production and support supply lines.
Tata also bears mentioning, as the company is both producing electric vehicles in India, as well as developing a charging network through its subsidiary Tata Power.
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