Vijayawada: 'Go Electric' campaign to boost use of e-vehicles launched

Vijayawada: Energy Minister Balineni Srinivasa Reddy on Thursday launched 'Go Electric' campaign through online mode to spread awareness on the benefits of e-mobility and electric vehicles charging infrastructure in Andhra Pradesh.

Speaking on the occasion, he said that Andhra Pradesh is making a big push for electric vehicles and has decided to set up 400 charging stations across the State in the first phase. Explaining the reasons, he said that electric mobility is a major alternative for IC (Internal Combustion) engines and has lower operational cost compared to IC engines. The e-mobility helps to reduce emissions and reduces import dependency of fossil fuels from other countries which helps our economy as well.

The Minister further added that the transport sector accounts for 18 per cent of total energy consumption. Conventional fuel vehicles are one of the major contributors of air pollution and an alternate solution is electric vehicles with zero emissions. The main constraints for the electrical vehicle promotion in a big way is charging infrastructure.

In view of this, the State government is taking steps to establish charging infrastructure at every 25 kms across national highways and wants to make more charging stations available to citizens in the coming days. "Installing of charging stations will boost the confidence of users of electric vehicles and this will also encourage the companies to launch new electric vehicles," said the Minister.

Secretary for Energy Srikant Nagulapalli said that the State government is taking constructive measures to promote electric vehicles and establish charging infrastructure in the State. He informed that the Bureau of Energy Efficiency is monitoring the 'Go Electric' campaign in the State in coordination with AP State Energy Conservation Mission (APSECM).