Phase 1 of EV charging grid set-up to be completed by year-end: Ather Energy

Electric vehicle startup Ather Energy on Tuesday said the first phase of its plans of setting up charging grid across over 135 locations would be completed by the year-end.

In all, the company targets to install 6,500 charging points across the country by 2022, Ather Energy said in a release.

The Hero MotoCorp-backed firm currently has 150 fast-charging stations pan-India, including 37 in Bengaluru and 13 in Chennai.

These grid fast-charging network can be used by all-electric two-wheelers and electric four-wheelers, besides charging its Ather 450X scooter at 15 km in 10 minutes, according to the release.

“Ather Grid has seen steady adoption in Bengaluru and Chennai and we believe that accessible charging infrastructure is critical before launching our products in any market we enter," said Ravneet Singh Phokela, Chief Business Officer, Ather Energy.

Ather Energy, that intends to launch across nine new markets in India, has already finalised setting up of 135 public fast-charging stations, the company said.

Phase one of installation of the grid to be live across over 135 locations by December 2020, it said adding that the installations of the grid points will begin before the deliveries of its flagship 125 CC Ather 450X scooter from next month.

As part of Phase one of the rapid expansion, Ather Energy will install about 5-10 fast charging points before delivery in each of the new markets they are expanding to, it said.

The company had last month announced that the deliveries of these scooters will begin in a phased manner from November with Bengaluru and Chennai getting it first.

The grid is supported by the mobile app, which allows all EV owners to directly ascertain available and unavailable locations on the home screen, the company said.

The application also has filters and information related to four-wheeler friendly locations, availability of free and paid parking, location timings and more.

Ather is one of the few companies in the country to have set up and contributed towards building an ecosystem for EVs in the country and invested in public infrastructure, it said.

“What the market needs right now is more visibility of the charging infrastructure. We will ensure that the Ather Grid is present in prominent locations in every city. Along with high-performance scooters, Ather is also building the supporting ecosystem with it.

“It's a huge investment and we believe it's a necessary one to improve the adoption of EVs in India," added Phokela. The e-scooter maker also said it has signed initial pacts with various malls, restaurant, cafe chains and retail outlets and now has access to more than 250 locations across the country.

Ather will continue to partner with more progressive hosts which can offer EV owners easy accessibility, curb range anxiety, and ease the adoption of these vehicles in India, it said.