EV maker to have at least 30 fast-charging points in Mumbai, partners with smart parking solutions company Park+ to drive adoption of e-mobility in the city.
06 Apr 2021 | 43158 Views | By Autocar Professional Bureau
Two months after setting up its first retail showroom in Bandra in Mumbaiand beginning deliveries of the Ather 450X in Mumbai, electric scooter maker Ather Energy has set up its fast-charging public network – Ather Grid – across the financial capital of India. Ten charging points are already live ...
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Two months after setting up its first retail showroom in Bandra in Mumbai and beginning deliveries of the Ather 450X in Mumbai, electric scooter maker Ather Energy has set up its fast-charging public network – Ather Grid – across the financial capital of India. Ten charging points are already live across key hotspots in the city ranging from Kala Ghoda Café in Fort, South Mumbai through to the suburbs (see location details below).
By next year, Ather Energy says it will have a minimum of 30 fast-charging points across Mumbai. Ather Energy has partnered with Park+ to set up EV charging locations in Mumbai. Park + is a smart parking solutions brand that allows users to locate parking, book slots and pay digitally.
Ather Energy will continue to partner with more progressive hosts which can offer EV owners easy accessibility, curb range anxiety, and ease the adoption of electric vehicles in Mumbai. The company is also working with co-operative housing societies and owners’ associations to assist Ather owners in setting up home-charging solutions in their apartments and buildings .
At present, Ather Energy has set up 128 public fast-charging points across 18 cities in India. The fast charging network can be used by all electric two-wheelers and electric four-wheelers and this facility is being offered free of charge to everyone till the end of September 2021.
The charging network is supported by the Ather Grid app which allows all EV owners to locate and check the availability of the nearest charging stations in real-time. Ather Energy in its accelerated expansion phase targets to set-up 5-6 points before delivery across the 27 markets that Ather will be present in by Q3 of 2021.
Commenting on the latest Ather Grid expansion, Ravneet Phokela, Chief Business Officer, Ather Energy said: “Ather Grid has seen steady adoption across all the cities we have begun deliveries in and we believe that accessible charging infrastructure is critical before launching our products in any market we enter. We have already signed up with multiple partners and will continue to do so in the months to come. Park+ has also been instrumental in finding us locations in Mumbai and increasing our reach.”
“What the market needs right now is more visibility of the charging infrastructure. With increased visibility comes mental comfort, curbing range anxiety. We do not need the density like petrol or CNG gas stations but increased accessibility and faster-charging speeds. We will ensure that Ather Grid is present in prominent locations to build confidence amongst our consumers. I feel proud to be part of the team that is building not just a high performance scooter but also building a supporting ecosystem with it. With the infrastructure now up, we expect to see a lot more of Ather 450X in Amchi Mumbai.”
Amit Lakhotia – Founder, Park+, added: “We are delighted to partner with Ather Energy to take this step towards the growth of environment-friendly mobility in India. We have already installed 20 chargers across cities and will expand this number to 30 by April. By bolstering the charging infrastructure setup in a faster, more hassle-free way, we are looking forward to the accelerated adoption of EVs in the country.”