‘India needs up to $9 billion for EV infra’

Bengaluru: India will require investments of $7.5-9 billion by 2030 for land acquisition and the development of facilities for EV manufacturing, lithium-ion battery production, and public charging stations, according to a report out on Thursday. The built-up area (meaning usable space and property structure) potential is of 125-149 million square feet (msf).

About 5,760 to 6,852 acres of land would be required by 2030 to support EV manufacturing, lithium-ion battery plants, and public charging infrastructure, predicted the report by property consulting firm Savills India.

“Aligning with India’s target of achieving 30% EV penetration by 2030, the real estate sector is expected to experience significant growth driven by the rise in EV adoption. The growing demand for EVs will stimulate the need for multiple real estate segments, including industrial and warehousing spaces to support EV and battery manufacturing, EV assembly units, and the storage and distribution of EV components and batteries. Additionally, the expansion of supply chains will increase the demand for strategically located warehouses and logistics parks,” elaborated Srinivas N, managing director, industrial and logistics, Savills India.

In line with government projections of cumulative EV sales reaching 25.3-31.8 million units by 2030 in India, the report expects this to drive land requirement of 2,009 to 2,467 acres for manufacturing facilities alone, with a built-up potential of 43.8-53.7 msf. The real estate investments required to support this would be $2.8-3.5 billion.

In terms of battery plants, the country’s lithium-ion battery manufacturing capacity is projected to grow to between 147 GWh and 179 GWh by 2030, from about 4 GWh (as of 2023). This is as India aims to produce 13% of its EV battery cell demand domestically by 2030. This will require a total land requirement of 1,348 to 1,641 acres of land (with a built-up potential of 29.3-35.7 msf) and an investment of $1.9-2.3 billion for land and construction.

The third part of the breakup being chargers, the report estimated that 81,000 to 92,500 public and semi-public EV charging stations will be needed across India by 2030, considering a 1:20 station-to-vehicle ratio. This translates to a total land requirement of 2,402 to 2,744 acres (with a built-up potential of 52.3-59.8 msf), requiring an investment of $2.8-3.2 billion.

Significant infrastructure will also be needed for electric two-wheeler charging across office complexes, malls, transit hubs and public parking areas, the report added.