BHEL Ramps Up Charging Infra Upgrade

(Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd) is set to collaborate with NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) to build a digital app for managing and integrating payments at EV charging stations across India. The app aims to address payment failures, system downtime, and refund issues that users have faced with existing private EV networks. ➤ BHEL is expected to be appointed the nodal agency for overseeing the installation of 72,300 public EV charging stations under the ₹10,900-crore PM E-Drive program. Of the total outlay, ₹2,000 crore is earmarked to support infrastructure development for EV charging stations. The PM E-Drive scheme has a limited window of around 8 months to execute its mandate. ➤ This move marks BHEL’s strategic pivot away from thermal power equipment manufacturing, towards aggregating EV infrastructure demand across the country. Since BHEL lacks in-house expertise in building transactional digital platforms, partnering with UPI pioneer NPCI is seen as a natural choice to ensure a secure and reliable payment ecosystem. ➤ The collaboration aims to standardize and streamline the EV charging experience for users nationwide.