Honda To Establish Battery Swap Stations At HP Petrol Pumps

The Japanese manufacturer will establish a network of swap stations at HPCL pumps, starting with Bengaluru, in the first half of this year

Honda’s battery sharing subsidiary, Honda Power Pack Energy India has announced its partnership with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), signing an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for establishing battery swap stations at HP petrol pumps in major cities across the country. This move comes shortly after Hero MotoCorp announced its partnership with Bharat Petroleum to set up an electric two-wheeler charging network.

Honda had already revealed in October 2021 that it will start battery testing in electric three-wheelers. This will help Honda test the endurance of its battery, called the Honda Mobile Power Pack e (MPP e) in Indian road conditions. Supplementing this, Honda will commence its Battery as a Service (BaaS) business in the second half of 2022. It will initially set up a network of swap stations at HP petrol pumps in Bengaluru, and will then expand to other major cities later in a phased manner. Honda has also mentioned that the swapping network will eventually be available for two-wheelers as well. In fact, Honda claims to have been “...developing its ties with multiple OEMs in various applications”.

Honda also revealed recently that it is working on an electric two-wheeler, which will be launched within the next financial year. The upcoming Honda electric scooter will be developed specifically for the Indian market, something along the lines of the Honda Activa E. 

The battery swapping initiative will help in considerably reducing the down time of an EV, not to mention bringing down the upfront cost of an EV massively. The move is also in line with the Indian government’s battery swapping policy and formulating interoperability standards. Moreover, Honda establishing a strong network of swap stations before the launch of its electric scooter will also ensure customers aren’t left in the lurch for charging infrastructure after buying the electric scooter. With Hero and Honda laying down a roadmap for electrification, the limelight has gotten even stronger on the Indian electric two-wheeler segment. This coupled, with the FAME II incentives, should go a long way in ensuring faster adoption of electric vehicles in India.