In a boost to India’s electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure network, Chetan Maini-led start-up SUN Mobility plans to set up the first batch of its battery-swapping stations for electric two and three-wheeler across the country in the last quarter of this fiscal, reported Livemint citing source.
The Bengaluru-based start-up is yet to set up any pilot stations, since it had been focusing on developing the core technology so far. SUN Mobility will deploy “test stations in the field in the next couple of months since the technology has been developed”, Chetan Maini, co-founder and vice-chairman at SUN Mobility, said in an interview to Livemint. “In the last quarter of this year, we will put 50 to 100 of them out there,” Maini added.
The stations, which use modular batteries suited to the entire gamut of EVs, will be set up at existing bus depots across the country, in northern India to cater to e-rickshaws and in southern India to charge electric two-wheelers. “Different cities will have different solutions because the consumer profiling is very different,” Maini said.
Akin to its partnership with commercial vehicle maker Ashok Leyland Ltd for its electric bus Circuit S, SUN Mobility will also partner with two and three-wheeler original equipment manufacturers soon to make their electric vehicles compatible with its proprietary Internet of Things-enabled battery packs, said Maini.
Maini called for a strong yet flexible government policy and regulatory framework for electric vehicles that doesn’t favour any particular form of technology, adding that “there is a need for initial financial support for businesses”. Regulatory support such as permission to deploy charging or battery swapping infrastructure at public transit hubs like metro stations will ensure optimized use of realty.
