• Current fleet of EVs could be supported by expanding ports, not locations
• Future growth will require new infrastructure planning: SLSEA 
• Govt. yet to secure funding, but private sector may step in

A 2022 study has found that 90 electric charging stations, spaced at 50 km intervals, would be sufficient to meet the charging needs of the growing demand for Electric Vehicles (EVs), according to the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SLSEA). 

Speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, SLSEA Director General H.K. Wickramasinghe stated that in 2022, during the fuel crisis that affected Sri Lanka, a study had been carried out to gauge the EV infrastructure necessary to cater to local demand. 

Accordingly, he revealed that the study had found that 90 electric charging stations spread out islandwide, spaced at 50 km intervals, would be sufficient to cater to the charging needs of the 5,000-6,000 EVs in the country at the time.

“We did a study to identify the number of charging stations required to cover all A- and B-Grade roads, in order to ensure that people can travel wherever they want without the charging of their EV becoming an issue. According to the study results, investing in 90 charging stations spaced at 50 km intervals would be sufficient to cover the whole country,” he stated.

He further noted that at the time of the study, there had been only around 5,000-6,000 electric vehicles in the country. He claimed that even if the current EV fleet has grown to 10,000, the demand could still be met through 90 charging stations by simply increasing the number of charging ports at each station.

“When the number of vehicles increases, what is necessary is not to increase the number of locations but to increase the number of ports,” Wickramasinghe stated.

However, he acknowledged that the study’s findings would no longer be applicable if the EV fleet were to expand beyond 10,000 vehicles.

He further clarified that the Government had yet to secure the necessary funding to develop the required charging infrastructure and had been exploring options to raise these funds through multilateral donor agencies. 

However, he noted that with John Keells Holdings entering the local EV market as the dealer for BYD, the company had pledged to utilise its Keells Supermarket locations to set up charging stations. 

Accordingly, Wickramasinghe suggested that such positive developments indicated that the necessary EV infrastructure may be established by the private sector alone, without the need for Government intervention or investment.