Green Is The Colour

Study finds solar-based rooftop photovoltaics to be not just sustainable but also an economically viable option for EV charging.

Electric vehicles (EVs) can help decarbonise the transport sector — one of the biggest contributors to air pollution in India. But to be ‘green’ in the realest sense, EVs need to run on clean energy.

CSTEP conducted a pilot study at the Bengaluru Electricity Supply Company (BESCOM) premises, installing solar-based electric vehicle chargers.

The study explored the possibility of using solar-based rooftop photovoltaics (SRTPV) for achieving a greener and more sustainable mode of transportation. Examining the commercial aspects of using grid-connected SRTPV, with and without a battery energy storage system, to power an electric vehicle charging station (EVCS), we found that SRTPV energy could be an economically viable option for EV charging in addition to being a green source of energy.

Incidentally, this pilot project bagged both SKOCH Award in Silver Category for Technology and India Smart Grid Forum Innovation Award for Smart Technology: Electricity-RE Integration in 2021.