EESL Plans to Install 500 More EV Charging Stations in FY21

“EESL is striding towards installing at least 500 chargers by the end of the financial year,” said Rajat Sud, EESL Managing Director.

The joint venture of PSUs under the Ministry of Power, the Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) has proclaimed to install at least 500 more electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in the country during fiscal 2020-21, in a conversation with IANS.

Talking to a local press agency, Sud mentioned that approximately 207 charging stations have already been installed across the country.

“The beginning of the financial year was difficult as the country was dealing with the Coronavirus and its related lockdowns. EESL’s suppliers have also been facing shortages of components and labor during the lockdown that extended up till May-end,” he said.

He further added, “With the supply resumed from the manufacturers and opening up of transport, EESL is striding towards installing at least 500 chargers by the end of the financial year. During the year, EESL has also completed an additional procurement of 1020 chargers.”

However, there is a long race to be covered for achieving the goals set by the National E-Mobility Mission of the Government of India, as EESL has completed the procurement process of 10,000 e-cars. Although, to date, 1,514 e-cars have been deployed/under deployment for Government organizations. And up to 308 AC & 180 DC captive chargers have been commissioned across all offices where EVs have been delivered.

Additionally, EESL aims to set up ‘Carbon Neutral Charging Stations’ by bundling solar rooftop, battery-based charging stations, and battery swapping stations.

Ultimately, the company plans to set up 10,000 charging stations over the next two to three years across the country and to have 30 percent of the EVs on roads by 2030.

To install the robust EV charging infrastructure, EESL has tied up with various private and public companies such as Apollo Hospitals, BSNL, Maha-Metro, BHEL, and HPCL.

“EESL has signed MoUs for smart meters with the states of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Bihar, NDMC-Delhi, Union Territory of Andaman & Nicobar and Rajasthan. We have cumulatively installed over 15 lakh meters as of mid-December 2020,” Rajat said.

Additionally, EESL plans to speed up the installation of smart meters in the country. A smart-meter digitally records and wirelessly shares the household electricity consumption and voltage level statistics to the distribution companies.

Speaking of the smart meter installation, Sud said, “Smart Meter installation, for the current fiscal, has been heavily affected by the pandemic. However, we have still gone ahead and installed over 3 lakh Smart Meters during the Covid imposed lockdown and thereafter. During the COVID imposed lockdown, smart meters have reaffirmed their importance in being vital tools in ensuring smooth billing and collection operations.”

“The average meter automated billing was above 95 percent in smart meter areas against a 71 percent provisional billing in areas with conventional meters. We are actively in discussion with new as well as states where the program currently ongoing. However, we are still awaiting a concrete response from these states,” he added.

Currently, EESL’s Smart Meter National Programme (SMNP) is working to replace 25 crore conventional meters with smart meters across India.

Recently, in December 2020, EESL had issued a tender, inviting bids from eligible vendors for the procurement of 500 electric vehicles (EVs). The last date for bid submission is February 5, 2021, while a pre-bid meeting has been scheduled for January 12, 2021.