CHENNAI: In a sign of growing demand for and use of electric vehicles (EV), two of India’s largest energy companies on Thursday announced tie-ups to set up charging infrastructure to service EVs.
For its part, Reliance Industries’ joint venture with British Petroleum (BP)—Jio-BP—has tied up with all-electric ride-hailing platform BluSmart to set up commercial large-scale EV charging infrastructure in locations where the latter operates.
Tata Power meanwhile also announced a partnership with the Lodha group to set up such a network in Mumbai and Pune.
Both Jio-BP and BluSmart will collaborate in planning, development, and the operation of EV charging infrastructure, at suitable locations, Jio-BP said in a statement.
“With the first phase-roll out in the national capital region, these EV charging stations will be capable of accommodating a minimum of 30 vehicles at each station and will be concentrated in urban areas,” it noted.
Anmol Jaggi, co-founder and CEO, BluSmart said that EV Superhubs are the future of EV charging since they provide seamless charging access to consumers and ride-hailing fleets.
“We will be jointly building some of the largest EV Superhubs in the world,” he said.
Tata Power’s tie-up with real estate developer Lodha Group meanwhile will provide electric vehicle charging infrastructure at the latter’s residential and commercial projects in Mumbai and Pune.
Tata Power currently has an extensive network of over 5,000 home chargers and over 600 public chargers in more than 120 cities in India, the company said in a statement.
“This strategic partnership will allow us access to a vast consumer base of EV users at Lodha. Our aim is to make their life simple and comfortable by allowing easy access to EV charging from the comfort of their homes and offices, thereby, removing range anxiety and encouraging wider adoption of electric vehicles in the country,” said Sandeep Bangia, Head-EV Charging, Tata Power.