A top official involved in the government’s e-vehicle’s programme said Tata Power, ABB, Acme Industries, and Dutch firms are actively considering setting up vehicle charging stations.

while Exide Industries, Amron Batteries and Microtek have held discussions with officials about supplying batteries and setting up bulk shops for motorists to swap drained out batteries with charged ones.

Praveer Sinha, chairman and managing director of Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd, said the company plans to partner DMRC and Municipal Corporation of Delhi to set up charging stations at metro stations and other possible locations.

In order to cut costs and promote electric vehicles, the government is considering sale of two-wheelers, three-wheelers and city buses without batteries to cut costs.

The batteries will be leased at a specified cost and can be swapped with recharged ones at charging stations. The government plans to shift to an all-electric fleet by 2030.

Sinha said a fast-charging station requires an investment of about 25 lakh, while a slowcharging outlet would cost about 5 lakh.

When the electric vehicle sales pick up in about five years, an area of 3 km could require about 300 charging stations with about 4-5 charging slots, he said. With this costing, setting up charging stations across Delhi would cost about Rs 3,300 crore over five years.

State-run NTPC and Power Grid Corp are also in talks with Delhi Metro Rail Corp (DMRC) and other entities in over half a dozen cities for space to set up battery charging and rapid vehicle charging stations, industry and government sources said.

The two firms also plan to purchase batteries in large numbers to lease them out as the government plans to promote electric- three wheelers without batteries to cut costs, sources said.