Charging up the ecosystem: The role of technology in sustainable mobility

India’s electric vehicle journey is gathering pace. Policies are rolling out, adoption is rising across sectors, and the supporting infrastructure is starting to take shape. As electric vehicles become more common, they are gradually shaping the broader energy ecosystem, influencing how power is distributed, consumed, and optimised.

The EV ecosystem is about more than just bigger batteries or adding more chargers. It takes three key elements working in harmony: innovations in automotive technology, smarter energy systems, and reliable charging infrastructure. When these pieces come together, the system becomes stronger and is built to endure. For India, where EV adoption is rapidly growing, striking the right balance among these will be critical to creating a future-ready ecosystem.

EVs today come with larger battery packs, better range, and software that makes them compatible across different chargers. Behind the scenes, energy systems are getting more responsive, taking in renewables, balancing loads, and keeping supply steady. On the front end, the goal is simple: charging that is easy to find, quick when you need it, and dependable every time.

Fast Chargers: Powering Speed, Scale, and Stability

Primarily, speed changes everything. Fast chargers are what make EVs practical beyond short commutes. They bring charging times down from hours to minutes, opening the door to long-distance travel.

Modern DC fast chargers, ranging from 60 kW to 240 kW and beyond, can charge an EV to 80% in under an hour. By bypassing the vehicle’s onboard AC converter and delivering power directly to the battery, these chargers offer both faster and more efficient charging. But it’s not just about speed, the true advantage lies in combining that speed with robust design, intelligent energy management, and seamless integration with the grid.

In India, DC fast chargers ranging from 60 kW to 240 kW and beyond can juice up an EV to 80% charge in less than an hour. For example, a passenger EV with a battery pack between 30 and 60 kWh — like the Tata Nexon EV or MG ZS EV — can go from 10% to 80% charge in just 30 to 40 minutes on a 120 kW charger, compared to taking 6 to 8 hours on a slower AC charger. Buses, which have larger battery packs of 200 to 300 kWh, can recharge overnight in 1 to 2 hours using 180 to 240 kW systems at depots. On the go, "opportunity charging" during driver breaks can add enough power in 20 to 30 minutes to keep buses running on schedule. Even the widely used electric three-wheelers, with 2 to 5 kWh batteries, are turning to rapid charging solutions in fleet operations, where every minute off the road means lost earnings. 

Making Technology Work for Everyone

Real progress happens when charging blends into everyday life. Imagine plugging in at your office, metro stop, or local market without a second thought. This is where reliable charging infrastructure, automotive innovation and energy systems seamlessly converge. And when utilities, automakers, city planners, and infrastructure players coordinate, the whole system grows in a way that is practical and sustainable.

EV charging technology, specifically smart charging, takes this further. These systems do not just push electricity; rather, they communicate with vehicles, predict demand, and make quick decisions so everything stays balanced. In a country as diverse as India, that kind of flexibility is not a bonus; it’s essential. If everyone plugged in to charge their EVs at 6 pm, the grid would buckle.

Features like dynamic load management address this challenge effectively. This smart feature allocates power as per the car's capacity and state of charge, ensuring that the grid stays stable and EV charging is quick and optimised. In addition, apps now let people schedule off-peak charging, keep track of costs, and monitor energy use in real time.

And then there is interoperability. Different vehicles, chargers, and networks need to speak the same language. That’s where open communication protocols like OCPP (Open Charge Point Protocol) enable seamless integration across the EV charging ecosystem.  When this happens, adoption gets faster, operations smoother, and investments go further.

Zooming out, the real transformation isn’t just about electric vehicles, it’s about how renewable power ties in with mobility, reducing emissions and improving energy security. And over time, EVs themselves would not just be drawing energy; they will be able to give it back.

When Cars Become Power Partners

This is where Vehicle-to-Grid, or V2G, comes in. It is still early days, but the potential is real. EVs could send electricity back during peak hours or outages, giving the grid some breathing room. Vehicle-to-Grid, or V2G, has the exciting potential to transform EVs from simply being electricity consumers to becoming active contributors to the power grid. Pilot projects in countries like Japan, the UK, and Denmark have already shown how electric cars can send electricity back to the grid during peak demand times, power outages, or to help balance supply and demand.

In India, the opportunity is even greater: with 1.7 million EVs sold in FY24 and projections estimating 30 to 40 million vehicles by 2030, just 10% participation in V2G could unlock a flexible power capacity of 10 to 12 gigawatts — roughly equal to the peak electricity demand of states such as Delhi or Gujarat. This technology could be a game-changer, turning vehicles into true partners in powering the nation.

The Path Forward

The path ahead is clear. For India’s electric future to truly take shape, EVs, energy systems, and charging networks must work together seamlessly. What we’re building today isn’t just a collection of charging points or grid connections, it’s the foundation of a mobility system designed specifically for India’s unique challenges: densely populated cities, extreme weather conditions, uneven power supply, and the need for affordable solutions.

Anshuman Divyanshu

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Anshuman Divyanshu is CEO of Exicom, a company that designs, manufactures, and provides services for electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions and critical power solutions for telecom and data center infrastructure.