Hero MotoCorp, one of the largest two-wheeler manufacturers has announced collaboration with Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), a leading oil marketing company to establish ‘large scale EV charging infrastructure.’

Dr Pawan Munjal, chairman and CEO, Hero MotoCorp said, “The partnership with BPCL, which is already at the forefront of customer energy solutions, will be beneficial for both the EV segment and customers. This collaboration will also unlock opportunities for asset allocation and expansion in the future.”

On February 17, Bharat Petroleum Corporation had announced establishing an EV fast-charging corridor on the Chennai - Trichy - Madurai highway. The OMC says it has rolled out CCS-2 DC Fast chargers at 10 of its conveniently located fuel stations along the 900 km route on both sides of the highway.

The company is converting 7,000 conventional retail outlets into energy stations providing multiple fuelling options, which will also include EV charging facility, in the medium to long term.

Arun Kumar Singh, chairman and MD, Bharat Petroleum Corporation said, “India’s personal mobility is primarily driven by two-wheelers who form the largest part of our valued customer base and the two-wheeler segment has been the early adopters of electric two-wheelers. Our alliance with Hero MotoCorp is therefore an extremely strategic step towards ushering in an era of best-in-class EV charging solutions for our customers in our Energy Stations and an exciting future of innovative solutions in the EV sector”.

With this announcement, Hero MotoCorp becomes the first automotive OEM to tie up with a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) to set up charging infrastructure across India.

The partners aims to first establish a substantial charging infrastructure at the existing nationwide energy station network and subsequently may broaden the collaboration to develop more synergies within the EV ecosystem and adjacent business verticals, thereby enabling prospects throughout the customer lifecycle.

In the first phase, charging stations will be set up across nine cities starting with Delhi and Bangalore. The network will be then expanded across the country with the aim to establish a high density of charging stations. Hero MotoCorp will soon commence the infrastructure development in the two cities. Each charging station will feature multiple charging points including DC and AC chargers and will be available for use to all electric two-wheelers.

The entire user charging experience will be controlled by a Hero MotoCorp Mobile-App and will be a cashless transaction model. The Bharat Petroleum energy station network will also provide accelerated opportunities to expand the scope of operations and services. The companies may utilise the gateways created to make additional investments into building a robust EV ecosystem.