Two Oil majors of India, The Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), an Indian state owned oil and gas company and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) have launched  electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in Nagpur in their company operated fuel stations. The IOCL in collaboration with Indian transportation network company Ola launched its first EV charging station at one of its petrol/diesel stations. The EV charging facility is set up at IOCL’s company-owned, company-operated (COCO) fuel station at RBI Square, Nagpur, Maharashtra.

HPCL launched the EV charging station at its fuel station located at Lakadganj, old Bhandara Road, Nagpur. This development is a witness to the fact that competition is heating up in the Indian EV sector.

“As India’s leading oil refiner and marketer, IOCL considers promoting ecological sustainability as part of its core business. Thus, this partnership with Ola is the right step forward as we re-imagine how India will commute in the coming years. We applaud Ola for building the Electric Vehicle eco-system from a nascent stage in Nagpur and are happy to collaborate with them in their efforts,” said Murali Srinivasan, Executive Director IOCL.

“EVs have the ability to solve some of the key issues we are currently facing with respect to vehicular pollution and air quality; and as a large-scale mobility platform, Ola can bring about a catalytic change,” added Srinivasan.

IOCL and HPCL have a vast network of fuel stations across the country and access to the remotest corners of India. Behemoths like IOCL, HPCL developing EV charging stations with access to such a wide network of fuel stations will be important for EVs to take off in India as access to charging stations is the most important need right now.

EV is the next big Cleantech opportunity in India and as of now many innovative deals are coming through setting a good precedent.

This is Ola’s second venture in the EV sector after it launched a pilot project for which ACME provided EcoCharge Battery Swapping & Charging Stations. Nagpur is one of the first cities to embrace the EV ecosystem. Recently, Fortum India signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Nagpur Municipal Corporation to set up EV charging infrastructure in the city of Nagpur.

Image credit: IOCL/HPCL