Thiruvananthapuram: An investment of Rs 19 crore will be sufficient to establish 90 charging stations with a total capacity of 12.5 MW for electric trucks along the 622-km Kasaragod-Thiruvananthapuram stretch of NH 66 by 2030, according to a joint study by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) and the Kerala State Electricity Board Limited (KSEBL).
The investment would account for less than one per cent of the Rs 2,000 crore allocated for public charging infrastructure under the PM E-DRIVE scheme, the study said. The requirement is projected to rise sharply by 2050, when the highway would need 1,939 chargers with a combined installed capacity of 204.5 MW. The cumulative investment is estimated at Rs 338 crore. Daily electricity demand for truck charging is expected to increase from 32 MW in 2030 to 833 MW by 2050.
The study analysed GPS data from 13,355 trucks and 3,39,692 parking events to assess charging requirements along the highway. It identified Kochi, Kozhikode and Kollam as priority charging hubs. The Thiruvangad-Kumbalam stretch alone is projected to require 76.4 MW of charging capacity by 2050.
KSEBL Director, Rajan M P, said the utility was committed to upgrading the power distribution network in priority hubs ahead of the anticipated rise in demand.
ICCT researcher, Harshimran Kaur said planning and construction of charging infrastructure should begin before electric trucks become widespread on the road. Delaying the process until the trucks are deployed could hold up the rollout. The Rs 19-crore investment required for the 2030 target could be accommodated under the PM E-DRIVE scheme.