Shuchi Anant Virya, a joint venture company between Lithium Urban Technologies and Fourth Partner Energy, has announced the setting up of a network of 18 electric vehicle charging points along the Manali-Leh route in the Ladakh region, under the brand name “Powerbank”
This has made Manali-Leh NH-4 India’s highest and longest passage with EV connectivity. Of the 18 chargers, 15 have been installed at an altitude of above 10,000 feet.
The PowerBank team installed 18 EV charging stations along 1,800 km in 10 days, a company release said. The entire road trip was successfully completed driving electric cars that were charged at the installed charging points. The chargers installed were a mix of Type-I and Type- II AC chargers catering to electric two, three and four wheelers.
With the rise of travellers and tourists along this scenic Himalayan route, pollution caused by fuel combustion has increased significantly, leading to severe environmental degradation.
“Through this initiative, PowerBank’s primary goal is to ensure that we convert at least 50% of the vehicular traffic to EVs and significantly reduce tailpipe emissions in the Ladakh regions in the next 36-48 months. We also seek to bring about a paradigm shift in how people perceive EVs – by addressing apprehensions around the availability of energy for long hauls and overnight road trips,” noted Sanjay Krishnan, Founder, Lithium Urban Technologies
Also read: Shuchi Anant Virya To Set Up EV Charging Points At HPCL’s Retail Outlets
Pan-India presence
The joint venture company Shuchi Anant Virya currently has set up charging points at more than 50 locations across 10 cities in India including larger footprint charging hubs in Pune, Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Bangalore and Kolkata under the brand name PowerBank, and has also tied up with fuel retailer HPCL to set up more than 100 EV charging points across its retail outlets pan-India this fiscal. Till date, the Powerbank network of chargers have facilitated nearly 10 million green kilometers of travel.
Featured photograph shows the location on map of the 18 EV chargers installed, while the inside photograph shows the charging station located at “Buddha Filling Point”, opposite Leh Airport.
