[pram_ind]

Team,

Saw this article in Times now of the new 240 kWH ev charger installed in Kochi Kerala. This is a game changer, and will pop up in many more KIA Showrooms.


https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/93642150.cms

Kona, MG ZS ev, KIA EV6 and BYD cars will benefit more with this fast charging.

[SKC-auto]

Such a bad reporting from TOI, confused between basic units of energy and power.

Energy is measured in kwh
Power is measured in kW.

The charger is 240kw, it dispenses 240kwh of energy if it can charge the car at 240kw continuous power for 1 hour.

Hope the govt sanctions permissions at a faster pace for such chargers, I am optimistic, if every other developed country can do, India can also do.

[DarthVeda]

the price per 15 minutes shown in Tata App would give someone a heart attack, when they don't realize the rate at which this charger charges. It's 1620 rupees per 15 minutes! And I do see someone using it while I just checked the price.

[lina]

The purpose of these chargers is unfortunately marketing and not solving the fast charging issue. There are 1000s of kMs highways serviced by just a handful of 25kW chargers and sometimes none at all. Instead of solving that, Kia, MG etc install FCs at their showroom for solving what exactly?

Originally Posted by DarthVeda

the price per 15 minutes shown in Tata App would give someone a heart attack, when they don't realize the rate at which this charger charges. It's 1620 rupees per 15 minutes! And I do see someone using it while I just checked the price.

Tata Power chargers based on kWh consumed and not time. Not sure why they put that in the app.

[pram_ind]

Originally Posted by lina

The purpose of these chargers is unfortunately marketing and not solving the fast charging issue. There are 1000s of kMs highways serviced by just a handful of 25kW chargers and sometimes none at all. Instead of solving that, Kia, MG etc install FCs at their showroom for solving what exactly?

The only EV Car selling in numbers is Tata Nexon EV having a maximum 21 to 30 kW charging speed, which would not be able to to take full advantage of the above chargers.

As KIA/Hyundai are planning to introduce their high end EV's in coming years, they might be creating infra as TATA did to sell their EV's.

[lina]

Originally Posted by pram_ind

The only EV Car selling in numbers is Tata Nexon EV having a maximum 21 to 30 kW charging speed, which would not be able to to take full advantage of the above chargers.

As KIA/Hyundai are planning to introduce their high end EV's in coming years, they might be creating infra as TATA did to sell their EV's.

Yes, but my point was that installing chargers in showrooms helps no one. A Kia customer will appreciate said 240kW charger installed on a highway restaurant rather than a showroom where it will be blocked by 100s of seltos' and sonets and each charging experience will involve a fight with security guards.

Above experience is from Tata and MG showrooms.

[Aritra]

It's a good move in the positive direction, but unfortunately has limited real-world impact unless followed suit along major highways of the nation. A person will rarely require FC capabilities while at his/her hometown; but this will be required more when we are doing long trips. Unless the auto majors, government and fuel corporations do not jointly work towards developing a charging network throughout the country, limited FCs may not yield the desired results.

[Prasidhi]

There should be more charging stations on the top of the Ghat Sections. EVs consume more power on the uphill journey and therefore a charging station at the top will be really useful in restoring the lost juice.

We lack fast chargers in Wayanad, especially after climbing the Ghat section from Calicut to Bangalore. Wayanad is a hill station and generally crowded on weekends with the tourists from downhill and also the route is busiest on Sunday afternoon with people to Bangalore from Kerala, hope the top hill will be having more fast chargers in future.

Same is the case with almost all high altitude places, especially in South India.

[ritesh_44]

Originally Posted by lina

The purpose of these chargers is unfortunately marketing and not solving the fast 0fcharging issue. There are 1000s of kMs highways serviced by just a handful of 25kW chargers and sometimes none at all. Instead of solving that, Kia, MG etc install FCs at their showroom for solving what exactly?



Tata Power chargers based on kWh consumed and not time. Not sure why they put that in the app.

While more chargers should come up on highways, it not easy to setup this capacity charger in remote location due to infrastructure issues. The transformer for this itself would have cost them a lot, they won't set this up in place with not reliable connection. Also someone has to start at some place, so its a good initial step.

More questions should asked to TATA about not provided higher charging speed, even the Nexon max is capping at 30Kw as per reports.

[lina]

Originally Posted by ritesh_44

More questions should asked to TATA about not provided higher charging speed, even the Nexon max is capping at 30Kw as per reports.

I dont think Tata ever imagined the success of the Nexon EV. They probably thought that it will be a second city car for most people. Users, on the other hand have driven it to the moon and back! So, I can excuse them for not having put in very fast charging for the initial Nexon EV. However, the same cant be said for the Max.

But I think the reason is because the battery chemistry and the cells are mostly the same. The max charges slightly faster because it has more cells. Tata, is currently sourcing the cells from somewhere and probably does not yet have access to faster charging cells.

25kW chargers are more common because it is easy to get permit for those from our ESCOMs. Many malls and service centers would be able to install these without additional capacity. Getting a 50kW connection is rather tough apparently. The chargers themselves will also be more expensive.

[Rada]

Originally Posted by Prasidhi

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We lack fast chargers in Wayanad, especially after climbing the Ghat section from Calicut to Bangalore.

Both Tata and Zeon have installed 24KW fast chargers at Kalpetta, on the Calicut - Bangalore route. Not enough, I know, but this number will only increase in the coming days.

[Prasidhi]

A few basic questions to existing EV owners who frequent highways:

1. Do we have any common app that lists all the charging stations enroute?
2. Do we have to install the specific app for charging from one station or is it possible to charge without having any app?
3. In some of the charging apps, I have seen chargers in hotel/resort premises (I am not talking about restaurants) and are these available to public or only to their guests? Is there a way to understand whether these can be used by seeing app?

[speedmiester]

Originally Posted by Prasidhi

A few basic questions to existing EV owners who frequent highways:

1. Do we have any common app that lists all the charging stations enroute?
2. Do we have to install the specific app for charging from one station or is it possible to charge without having any app?
3. In some of the charging apps, I have seen chargers in hotel/resort premises (I am not talking about restaurants) and are these available to public or only to their guests? Is there a way to understand whether these can be used by seeing app?

1. Plugshare is the best app/website which has information on charging infra across the globe. It is quite comprehensive with option to rate and update the charging info. Pulse is one more app that works.
2. As of now, you have to install specific app for charging depending on the service provider. This is something that is unavoidable as of now. I have about 7 apps on my phone for this.
3. If the charger is from one of the EV service provider, it can be used by public. Tata power provides charging facilities for Taj hotels and their vacation homes, some of these are only for their guests. These are also marked as such in respective apps and in plugshare.

[Rada]

Originally Posted by Prasidhi

A few basic questions to existing EV owners who frequent highways

Plugshare, as has been mentioned, is the app that tries to aggregate the chargers of different manufacturers into one app. It keeps itself up to date, by incorporating the inputs from the app users themselves.

While Tata Power chargers are prevalent all across India, certain local players are dominant in certain states. For example, Zeon and Relux are popular in TN. Fortum is the leading player in Hyderabad area. Likewise, Statiq and Shell have a number of chargers in Karnataka (Bangalore, especially). When it comes to Kerala, it is GOEC.

I have only mentioned a few players in South India. If you take the whole country, you will find a number of local players coming up every month.

So if you are going on an inter-state trip in an EV, it makes sense to download these apps for planning purposes. Also, without the respective app, you cannot initiate payment (app wallet, credit cards, UPI) and charge your vehicle.