Indian OEM Tata Motors has signed a deal with oil and gas heavyweight Shell's EV charging arm to build out a public charging network across India.
India will need at least 1.32mn stations by 2030 to facilitate the rapid adoption of EVs, according to a report released by the Confederation of Indian Industry last year, but currently has only 12,000.
Tata has not confirmed how many charging stations it is initially planning to build, but the new partnership could make use of Shell's existing fuel station as well as Shell Recharge plug-in locations in its Indian network.
"The collaboration will leverage Shell’s widespread fuel station network and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility’s insights from over 140,000 Tata EVs on Indian roads to set up chargers at locations frequently visited by Tata EV owners. Additionally, both companies will work towards delivering superior charging experiences," Tata says.
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Tata also suggests that the stations will use Shell Recharge ultrafast hardware and that the locations will have integrated retail options.
"By combining TPEM’s deep understanding of EV usage with Shell’s unparalleled customer experience, this strategic alliance will certainly bring a marked change in India’s charging behaviour, in turn driving up the EV adoption in the country,” says Tata Passenger Electric Mobility (TPEM) chief strategy officer Balaje Rajan.
India is being targeted as a large and relatively untapped opportunity for EV makers, with OEMs such as Vietnam's Vinfast and China's BYD aiming to crack the burgeoning market. However, a drastic charging shortfall threatens to limit the country's EV adoption.
Tata has an existing agreement with fuel retailer Hindustan Petroleum Corporation to collaborate on rolling out public charging stations across India.
And Indian EV ride-hailing firm Blusmart recently received a $25mn investment from Swiss asset manager Responsability to expand its 35 charging locations across Delhi and Bangalore.
Fellow Indian auto manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has also announced it will create a charging infrastructure network in conjunction with with Adani TotalEnergies E-Mobility Limited (Atel). However, the partnership is initially looking to roll out only 1,100 chargers across India over the next few years
Ciaran has written about finance, politics and culture. He is passionate about e-mobility and what it means for our way of life.
Ciaran has a Masters in Ancient Philosophy from Oxford University.
