Charging Stations: The Chicken-and-Egg Problem

Why buyers wait for chargers and investors wait for buyers, how India is expanding public charging, and why home charging matters most.

EV charging faces a chicken-and-egg problem.

The problem

People hesitate to buy EVs without chargers.
Companies hesitate to build chargers without enough EVs to use them.

Economists call this a coordination problem with network effects.

Where charging happens

Most charging happens at home or work, especially for two-wheelers.
Public chargers matter for long trips, apartment residents and taxis.

India’s network

Public charging stations grew to tens of thousands by 2025, concentrated in big cities and highways.
Oil companies installed chargers at petrol pumps.
PM E-DRIVE funds public chargers.

Economics of a charger

Low utilisation makes many chargers unprofitable at first.
Fast chargers cost more but earn more per session.
Electricity tariffs and demand charges affect profits.

Apartment challenge

Many urban Indians live in apartments without private parking, making home charging harder. Rules increasingly require charging points in new buildings.

The empty charger

A fast charger on a highway sees only a few cars a day in its first year. As more EVs appear, usage climbs and the station becomes profitable.

Thinking public chargers are where most EVs charge

Most charging happens at home or work.

Key takeaways

Charging faces a chicken-and-egg problem.
Most charging happens at home or work.
Public chargers grew to tens of thousands by 2025.
Low early utilisation makes chargers hard to profit from.