Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) on Monday opened its first battery-swapping station in Kolkata for electric vehicles (EV).

The oil marketing PSU opened the facility at its retail outlet in New Town on the eastern outskirts of the city in collaboration with Sun Mobility, the company said in a statement, adding that this marks a significant step forward in promoting sustainable and accessible electric mobility solutions across the city.

Battery-swapping technology for two and three-wheeler EVs has proven to be a game-changer across India.

IOC director (marketing) V Satish Kumar said, "The battery-swapping technology presents a significant opportunity for promoting sustainable electric mobility solutions. This facility is expected to play a pivotal role in the adoption of EVs and spearhead energy transition in eastern India." In the coming months, IOC, in association with Sun Mobility, will install more battery-swapping facilities at its retail outlets, allowing drivers to access its convenient and efficient solution to quickly swap depleted batteries for fully charged ones.

This enables faster turnaround times, making EVs more convenient for users.

Sun Mobility CEO Anant Badjatya elaborated that the state-of-the-art technology would propel mobility to the future and play an important role in removing the bottlenecks for EV users.