Nitin Gadkari bullish on Battery Swapping, says new policy to boost electric vehicle sales

Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said battery-swapping as a concept was formulated to address all the challenges by promoting various technologies and business models which would ensure lower upfront costs, minimal downtime, and lower space requirements for charging the batteries. Hence, he added that battery swapping policy shall play a critical role in the growth of electric vehicles in the country.

In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, the Union minister said battery swapping policy aims to create a framework for greater interoperability while safeguarding the innovation potential for the EV battery ecosystem.

In the statement, the Minister said the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has currently formed a committee under ETD51 Committee to formulate the standards for the form factor, namely the size and dimensions of the battery, communication protocols, connectors and interoperability that shall ensure comprehensive interoperability amongst EVs.

These standards are being formulated keeping in mind that they do not stifle innovation and rather enable effective, efficient, reliable, safe, and customer-friendly implementation of battery-swapping infrastructure, he said.

The draft Battery Swapping Policy is pivoted around creating a framework for greater interoperability.