Convergence Energy Services Limited (CESL) has issued a request for proposal for the installation and maintenance of 810 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations for four-wheelers across 16 highways and expressways in India. The installations are on a build, own, and operate model for eight years, which can be extended to ten years. CESL, a subsidiary of Energy Efficiency Services (EESL), has been awarded financial support to install these EV charging stations as part of the Ministry of Heavy Industries’ Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicle programme. The bid submission deadline is May 3, 2022.
As per the tender guidelines, to be eligible for the bidding process, the bidders must submit a document fee of Rs 25,000. Further, CESL stated that 25 per cent of the total quantity is earmarked for registered MSMEs for the tendered item. Of this, 4 per cent and 3 per cent will be earmarked for procurement from micro and small enterprises owned by scheduled caste and scheduled tribe entrepreneurs and women entrepreneurs, respectively. At each charging station, the charging operators must verify that the number of EVs charged is equal to the number of charging guns. They should also make sure that all of the EV chargers are covered by a three-year warranty.
In January 2022, CESL floated a tender for the procurement, operation, and maintenance of 5,450 electric buses, 135 double-decker electric buses, and allied electric and civil infrastructure on a gross cost contract through the ‘Grand Challenge’ programme. The EESL’s ‘Grand Challenge’ programme identified a set of homogeneous demand for electric buses in major cities including Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Surat.
