New Govt Rule: Charging Your EV At Night? Pay 30 % More!

In the last five years, we have seen a change in automobile trends not just in India but around the world. In India, several companies have started setting up fast chargers in different parts of cities and highways as part of developing infrastructure.

We know that these chargers on the road are actually more expensive compared to home chargers as they are faster. The Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission has now issued a bunch of new regulations, where they have revised the Time of Day (ToD) billing for EVs. As per the new regulation, charging at night is going to cost you 30 percent more.

The commission has actually divided the ToD into two zones. The first one is being called the solar period, and if you are charging your electric vehicle from a charging station during this period, which is 9 AM to 4 PM, you have to pay 30 percent less than the normal rates.

However, if you are charging your EV anytime between 4 PM and 9 AM, then you would have to pay 30 percent more than the normal tariff. They are calling this the non-solar period.

For example, if you were usually spending Rs 100 to recharge your car at a charging station, it would only cost you Rs 70 during the solar period, and you would have to spend Rs 130 during the non-solar period.

The commission has decided to revise the tariffs on charging stations after new guidelines regarding the functioning of EV charging stations were released by the Central Government.

Currently, Kerala has three zones for ToD billing: 6 AM to 6 PM, 6 PM to 10 PM, and 10 PM to 6 AM. With the new guidelines in place, Kerala will only have two zones.

With these new guidelines in place, the government is actually encouraging or pushing EV owners to charge their vehicles during the daytime. It should be noted that these tariff changes are applicable to the charging stations and not to home chargers.

With this new move, EV charging stations that are using on-grid captive solar power plants could suffer a loss if they fail to consume the maximum solar power which they generate between 9 AM and 4 PM.

The reason for that is because the power they supply to the grid from 4 PM to 9 AM will not be recorded in the meter. These charging stations also supply unused solar power generated to the grid between 9 AM and 4 PM, and later, this power is consumed from the grid from 4 PM to 9 AM. When they do so, they are only able to use 53 percent of the power they have supplied to the grid.

For people who have been relying on public chargers during road trips, this new revision is actually good and bad at the same time. If you charge your vehicle during the daytime, you can end up saving some amount, while you may end up spending the same saved amount in the evening if you charge your vehicle during the non-solar period. So from now on, EV owners not only have to be careful with their driving style but also mindful of the time they use these chargers.