India needs Rs 16,000 cr capex to meet public EV charging demand by 2030: Report

New Delh: India needs capital expenditure to the tune of Rs 16,000 crore to meet the country’s growing public charging demand for electric vehicles (EVs) and achieve the mission of over 30 per cent electrification by 2030, according to a report released on Monday.

The FICCI report on “Electric Vehicle Public Charging Infrastructure: 2030 Roadmap” reveals that the current financial viability for public charging stations in India remains low with utilisation rates of less than 2 per cent, and to achieve profitability and scalability, “we need to aim for an 8-10 per cent utilisation by 2030”.

“For instance, the current cost structure of electricity tariffs with fixed charges regardless of energy consumption combined with low utilisation at public charging stations is making it challenging to achieve break even. States like UP, Delhi and Gujarat have no/low fixed tariffs but there are other states where fixed tariffs are high, thereby challenging the viability,” FICCI said.

The report called for action by key stakeholders, including policymakers, industry players, and government bodies, to enable India’s transition towards clean energy and sustainability.

It also outlined five key challenges that need to be addressed to scale up public charging infrastructure. These include limited financial viability; DISCOM or power-related issues; land-related issues; operational challenges; and standardisation and inter-operability.

The report further suggested standardising GST rates for EV charging services from 18 per cent to 5 per cent in line with taxation across the EV value chain. It also called for a shift from two-part tariff to single-part tariff with consistent pricing across states.

The report also recommended that states promote electric three-wheeler (E3W) adoption such as no permit requirement for buying E3W; in the interim, usage of same permit to shift from CNG three-wheeler to E3W.

It suggested setting-up a state-level cell with representation from industry stakeholders, state and central authorities to enable and monitor charging infrastructure roadmap implementation.

Another important recommendation by the report sought the Ministry of Power guidelines for installation and operation of EV charging infrastructure to be a mandate for state discoms (distribution companies) to ensure timely establishment of public charging stations (PCS).

The report further suggested that the top-40 of the 700-plus cities analysed on the basis of their EV sales from 2015 to 2023-24 and 20 highway stretches be prioritised for scaling up public charging infrastructure.

These top 40 cities are expected to have higher EV penetration in the next 3-5 years, given the current EV adoption rate, and favourable state policies. Moreover, 20 highways stretches connecting these 40 priority cities contribute to 50 per cent of the vehicular traffic.