By the first week of March, 15 electric vehicle charging stations will be available in Brihanmumbai Electric Supply & Transport Undertaking (BEST). These EV charging stations are located at the NSCI in Worli, Colaba, Mantralaya, Back Bay, Hiranandani bus stand, Bandra Reclamation, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Goregaon (West) bus station, Mahim bus station, Tardeo bus station, Walkeshwar bus station, Bandra (East) bus station, Bandra (west) bus station, and Seven Bungalows bus station.
Lokesh Chandra (General Manager at BEST) stated that more EV charging stations would be built in Mumbai to provide a cleaner environment and ensure a sustainable future. Chandra stated, “As EV purchasing is gaining momentum there will be a need for such charging stations. Therefore, BEST has taken steps toward setting up the infrastructure. This will encourage more people to purchase EVs.”
According to the official, space availability is the most important thing when setting up an EV charging station. To ensure vehicle mobility, BEST stands or depots, which are large, were considered. These 15 EV charging stations will be open by March 1st week. More such facilities will follow. BEST claims that it plans to open nearly 55 EV charging stations in Mumbai.
The BEST undertaking is only licensed for electricity distribution in Mumbai’s island city. It does not operate in suburban Mumbai. However, GM Chandra stated that they will be able to set up infrastructure for EV charging stations in the suburbs. Chandra stated that power will be purchased from other power distributors for charging stations beyond the island city. He also said that a mobile app is being developed where private EV users can book slots at these charging stations, and then pay accordingly. Chandra stated that this would reduce time.
There are currently a few BEST charging stations for EVs in the city, but they are not available to public or private users. Only BEST buses and administrative electric vehicles of the best buses are permitted at the EV charging stations. The public transport company BEST plans to convert all of its BEST buses into EVs by 2028.