New Delhi: Setting up public electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in Delhi is set to become easier and more affordable. Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) has amended its electricity supply regulations to align them with the Centre’s PM E-DRIVE scheme, which provides financial support to promote electric vehicles and develop public EV charging infrastructure.The amendment has removed a technical hurdle that had prevented charging station developers from claiming the full financial assistance available under the scheme.Companies setting up public EV charging stations in the city will now receive a demand note — the bill issued by the discoms before giving a power connection — that includes the entire cost of creating the required electricity infrastructure. Since these costs are eligible for support under the PM E-DRIVE scheme, the EV charging infrastructure developers can now claim the available financial assistance.Earlier, the demand note covered only basic charges such as the service line, security deposit and road restoration charges. The much larger cost of strengthening the electricity network was paid by discoms and later recovered from all electricity consumers through power tariffs. This created a problem because although the scheme allows financial assistance for such infrastructure, these costs did not appear in the demand note issued to charging station developers.DERC’s order has directed all discoms to include the complete cost of electricity infrastructure required for eligible EV charging projects in the demand note itself. Developers, or the designated state nodal agency, will initially pay these costs. They can then seek reimbursement under the PM E-DRIVE scheme.At the same time, DERC has barred discoms from recovering these infrastructure costs through future electricity tariffs. This means ordinary power consumers will no longer have to bear the expense of expanding the EV charging network.“The revised framework is expected to improve the financial viability of public charging projects and encourage greater private investment in charging infrastructure. It will also speed up the rollout of public charging stations, battery swapping stations and battery charging facilities across Delhi,” said an official.Meanwhile, Delhi Transco Ltd has been designated as the state nodal agency for implementing the scheme in Delhi. It will identify eligible charging sites, coordinate with discoms and charging point operators, maintain centralised records of projects and payments, and submit quarterly progress reports to DERC.
