Twenty energy companies have joined hands to form an alliance to create an open energy network, on lines of the united payment interface (UPI), to facilitate seamless payment and transaction interoperability within electric vehicle (EV) charging networks.

The alliance—Unified Energy Interface (UEI)—includes member companies such as ChargeZone, Pulse Energy, Kazam, Sheru, Trinity, Turbo, etc.

Besides, public policy think tanks and research organisations specialising in energy, climate, and technology, like the Rocky Mountain Institute and World Resources Institute (WRI) are also joining the consortium in an advisory capacity.

India Smart Grid Forum (ISGF) CEO Reji Pillai pointed out that ISGF has been promoting peer-to-peer (P2P) trading of green electricity from rooftop solar and has undertaken three successful pilot projects on P2P trading of green energy on blockchain platform in India.

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The key challenge in scaling up P2P projects is the payment settlement mechanism between the peers involved in the trading. In the present scenario, the payment against P2P trade has to be managed by the respective utilities, he explained.

“With UEI, we could enable P2P payments directly between the peers while the energy wheeling charges for the utility can be levied in the electricity bills by the utility. This is going to unleash a green energy revolution in the country, particularly with 10 million rooftop solar PV systems being rolled out on fast track under the PM Suryoday Yojana. UEI will herald a paradigm change in the fundamental operating regime of the power sector globally,” Pillai added.

Seamless interface

The UEI network has received a green light from the Department of Science and Technology. The not-for-profit alliance is being formed to help fund the working group and any minimal infrastructure cost the network may have at the inception. The cost will be equally split between all alliance members.

It is built on the Beckn protocol, a Made-in-India, open-sourced protocol that enables open networks like Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), Unified Health Interface (UHI), Open Network for Education and Skilling Transformations (ONEST) and many more.

Till date, the network has facilitated 1.4GWh of energy transactions across the entire network and is poised to grow 100x more with prominent B2C apps expected to join the UEI network in July 2024.

Large networks such as Kazam, Pulse Energy, ChargeZone and Trinity collectively have 3,000 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across the country, while the rest of the alliance members have small sub-10 charging networks.

As per government data, India has 12,146 operational public EV charging stations as of January 2024 with Maharashtra having the highest numbers followed by Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala and Uttar Pradesh.

Enhancing charging infra

The UEI alliance is dedicated to fostering global development, adoption and compliance with unified standards for energy-related economic transactions between digital platforms.

The focus areas include scaling transaction volumes within the UEI network to enhance efficiency and reach. The alliance is committed to ensuring that the protocol in action remains relevant and adaptable to market needs, guiding technical evolution and governance.

Additionally, the alliance will promote a scalable model that facilitates the easy integration of both new and existing participants, streamlining processes and expanding their impact.

Pulse Energy CEO Akhil Jayaprakash emphasised that Pulse is a customer-obsessed organisation. Since its inception, the company has been nurturing the idea of an open energy network.

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“In order to accelerate the world’s transition to EVs, we need systems that are interoperable and do business with each other seamlessly,” he added.

Trinity Executive Director Raj Kumar said that as the transportation sector shifts towards greater electrification, it’s crucial to ensure that EV drivers can access charging infrastructure easily, regardless of their vehicle’s brand or the charging network.

“Trinity has been a pioneer in such initiatives, like UEI, which aims for seamless integration at the backend. This approach improves convenience for EV drivers by eliminating the need for multiple access cards or accounts. Furthermore, it fosters competition and innovation among charging point operators, as they are motivated to provide better services and prices to attract customers,” he noted.

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