Battery Swapping policy shall play a critical role in the growth of electric vehicles in the country, says Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

Battery Swapping as a concept is formulated to address all the challenges by promoting various technologies and business models which will ensure lower upfront costs, minimal downtime, and lower space requirements for charging the batteries, says Nitin Gadkari. 

Battery swapping policy aims to create a framework for greater interoperability while safeguarding the innovation potential for the EV battery ecosystem. Currently, BIS has formed a committee under ETD51 Committee of BIS to formulate the standards for form factor (i.e. size and dimensions) of the battery, communication protocols, connectors and interoperability that shall ensure comprehensive interoperability amongst EVs.

These standards are being formulated keeping in mind that they do not stifle innovation and rather enable effective, efficient, reliable, safe, and customer-friendly implementation of battery-swapping infrastructure.

The draft Battery Swapping Policy is pivoted around creating a framework for greater interoperability. Further, the Battery Swapping Policy also clearly delineates all aspects of accountability.