HPCL EV Charging Network Grows 8% to 5,826 Stations

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) closed its latest network count on Sept. 1 with 5,826 electric-vehicle charging points spread across 25,238 retail outlets. That is up from roughly 5,400 in March, an increase of about 8%. More importantly, the state-owned fuel retailer is shifting its focus beyond passenger vehicles. It is now installing 240-kW ultra-fast chargers for electric trucks and buses along 50 highway corridors.

India’s public charging ecosystem is still early-stage. Government data shows 52,718 public EV charging stations nationwide, which suggests HPCL’s network accounts for about 11% of the total. But direct comparisons are imperfect. Some datasets count an individual charger as a station, some count an entire site, and battery-swapping cabinets fall into different categories. The real share of HPCL’s network depends on how the numbers are classified.

The growth curve has been uneven. Most of HPCL’s new chargers were added during the first quarter of its current fiscal year, when the network climbed to 5,806 points by the end of June. The latest 5,826 figure is only slightly above that quarter-end number. Its FY26 annual report, meanwhile, showed 5,533 charging facilities as of March 31 including swapping stations. That bookkeeping difference explains why two different March totals have appeared in public reporting.

The bigger story is what HPCL is building now. Under the central government’s PM E-DRIVE programme, the company is rolling out 240-kW ultra-fast chargers for heavy commercial vehicles. That is a meaningful step up from its existing network, which spans alternating-current and direct-current chargers rated from 3.4 kW to 120 kW. Long-haul trucking requires high power in short time windows, and these chargers are designed to make that workable.

Battery swapping is part of the same push. HPCL is pairing ultra-fast charging with swapping infrastructure for commercial vehicles, again under PM E-DRIVE. For fleet operators, swapping can be quicker than even the fastest charger, and it reduces strain on the grid at busy stops. The company is using its fuel-station footprint to create multi-energy hubs instead of building a separate EV charging brand.

Partnerships are doing much of the heavy lifting. HPCL has tied up with Energy In Motion to co-develop charging and battery-swapping facilities for electric heavy commercial vehicles at selected retail outlets. A separate agreement with Blue Energy Motors covers battery swapping and ultra-fast charging along key highway routes. The deal with EKA Mobility extends into commercial EV charging, battery swapping, green hydrogen, and sustainable logistics.

Smaller vehicles have not been left behind. HPCL’s partnership with Honda has produced more than 140 battery-swapping stations across Delhi-NCR, Gurugram, and Mumbai. These are aimed at delivery riders and gig-economy drivers who need quick turnarounds. The wider network includes more than 2,250 CNG outlets, solar installations at over 23,000 fuel stations, and more than 150 battery-swapping facilities.

Policy support helps explain the pace. PM E-DRIVE, the Ministry of Heavy Industries’ flagship EV programme, has earmarked around ₹2,000 crore for charging infrastructure. That money is spread across multiple state and private players, but it gives oil marketing companies a clear incentive to put hardware in the ground. With fleet operators paying closer attention to total cost of ownership, the policy push is beginning to show up in tangible capacity.

HPCL is not alone in this race. Indian Oil and Bharat Petroleum have announced similar charger roll-outs, and competition for highway locations is intensifying. What sets HPCL apart is its willingness to position commercial-vehicle services at the same sites that already sell petrol, diesel, and CNG. That approach could prove valuable in the logistics segment, where route coverage matters more than brand recognition.

For a US observer, HPCL’s expansion is a practical example of how oil retailers can adapt without abandoning their core assets. The raw number of chargers will keep rising, but the real shift is in what a fuel stop can offer. If these 50 highway corridors are built out as planned, electric trucking in India will move from pilot projects to a more routine option.