The government has released revised guidelines and standards for charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, allowing owners to charge their vehicles using their existing power connections at home and at work, according to the Union Ministry of Power.
“In a significant step, owners may charge their electric vehicles at their residence/offices using their existing electricity connections. Infrastructure requirements for Public Charging Infrastructure as well as for Public Charging Infrastructure for long-range EVs and/or heavy duty EVs have been outlined,” the ministry said in a statement.
Under the revised guidelines, any individual or entity is free to set up public charging stations without the need for a licence, provided that such stations meet the technical, safety, and performance standards and protocols outlined in the guidelines, as well as the norms/ standards/ specifications outlined from time to time by the Ministry of Power, Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), and Central Electricity Authority (CEA).
A comprehensive list of Public Charging Station (PCS) compliance requirements has also been provided. These include “appropriate” infrastructure standards for civil, electrical, and safety requirements.
“The objective is to enable faster adoption of electric vehicles in India by ensuring safe, reliable, accessible and affordable charging infrastructure and eco-system. This would also promote energy security and reduction of emission intensity of the country by promotion of entire EV ecosystem,” the ministry said.
The guidelines have been made further technology-agnostic by providing for not only the prevailing international charging standards available in the market but also the new Indian charging standards.
To address the challenge of making a charging station financially viable during the period of rapid growth of electric vehicles, a revenue-sharing model for land used for the same has been implemented. Land available with the government/public entities shall be provided for the installation of Public Charging Stations on a revenue-sharing basis at a fixed rate of Re 1 / kWh (used for charging) to be paid to the land-owning agency from such PCS business payable quarterly.
A model revenue sharing agreement has also been included under the guidelines and It may also be adopted by the public land-owning agency for providing the land to a private entity for installation of Public Charging Stations on a bidding basis with a floor price of Re 1 / kWh.