Bhel May Spearhead EV Charging Tenders

Govt plans to set up 72,300 electric vehicle public charging stations

- Manas Pimpalkhare & Rituraj Baruah

State-run Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (Bhel) may be nominated to lead the tendering process for 72,300 electric vehicle (EV) public charging stations under the ₹10,900-crore PM E-drive scheme, two people aware of the development said.

"With Bhel being the nodal agency for demand aggregation of EV charging stations, it is likely that it will also play a key role in tendering these charging stations to interested stakeholders," said the first of the two persons cited earlier, both of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity. As the nodal agency, price discovery would be a key function of Bhel in its new role in India's evolving EV space, the second person said. Bhel's stock ended little changed at ₹253.55 on the BSE on Friday.