Develop technology to reduce EV charging time, Minister tells ARAI

Among the multiple challenges electric vehicle manufacturers and EV owners face, one is charging time for the zero-emission vehicles. The batteries usually take a painstakingly long time to get charged. To reduce this worry, the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) should develop new technology, said Union Minister of Heavy Industries Mahendra Nath Pandey on Saturday.

"To overcome one of these problems related to charging, I am going to urge Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) to develop the technology that reduces the charging time," the minister said. He further added that considering the charging concern for the EV owners, the central government has chosen nine expressways across the country, where 6,000 EV charging stations will be installed. Around 50 per cent of that will be installed soon.

At around 30 per cent, batteries contribute the largest chunk to the total cost of electric vehicles. One of the challenges for EV adoption is their high cost. Importing the Advanced Chemical Cell (ACC) for EV batteries is one of the reasons behind this high cost. The minister believes that the ACC can be locally produced to keep the battery price down.

He further said that around 70 per cent of the material used in manufacturing lithium-ion batteries, is already available in India. "With these newly introduced PLI schemes, the government is providing support up to ₹362 crore per gigawatt in this sector of EVs," Pandey further added.

With the PLI scheme, an investment of ₹42,500 crore in battery and component manufacturing in India is expected, said Pandey. "The government is providing financial support up to 8-13 per cent for auto component manufacturers and up to 13-18 per cent for EV manufacturers through the scheme. This will also facilitate the creation of about 7.5 lakh new advanced-level employment opportunities," he added.