From Early-Mover To Market Leader: How This EV Charging Venture Is Reducing Air Pollution In India With Green Mobility Solutions

It was October 2016. Awadhesh Kumar Jha, then a top executive at Fortum India, was flying back to Delhi from Helsinki after a business trip.

As his flight descended, he saw a thick, grey haze hanging over the city. Delhi, like many major Indian cities, was choking on vehicular emissions.

“The experience was unsettling. The air was visibly polluted. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Something had to change,” recalls Mr. Jha, now the Executive Director of GLIDA, during an exclusive interview with Startup Pedia.

The timing couldn’t have been better. Fortum (a Finnish state-owned sustainable energy solutions company) had already been building and operating EV charging infrastructure in Nordic countries starting from 2011.

Awadhesh wondered: How could Fortum bring its global expertise to India?

At the time, EVs in India were rare, and public charging stations were virtually non-existent.

It was a classic chicken-and-egg dilemma – people wouldn’t buy EVs without a charging network, and companies wouldn’t invest in charging stations without enough EV users.

But Fortum, under Awadhesh’s leadership, saw an opportunity. With his deep background in energy infrastructure and policy advocacy, he knew someone had to take the first step.

That’s how GLIDA, formerly known as Fortum Charge & Drive India, was born in 2017.

NAVIGATING THE INITIAL CHALLENGES:

Starting an EV charging business in India wasn’t as simple as setting up a few charging stations. GLIDA’s biggest early challenge wasn’t even technological – it was regulatory.

“In India, selling electricity is a licensed business. We weren’t sure if we were selling electricity or just providing a vehicle charging service,” Awadhesh explains to Startup Pedia.

The ambiguity posed a major risk. If EV charging were classified as electricity resale, GLIDA would need a distribution licence, making expansion almost impossible.

Mr. Jha and his team studied global regulations, especially those in the US and Canada, where EV infrastructure had matured. Using these case studies, they engaged in discussions with India’s top energy officials.

Their persistence paid off.

In 2018, the Indian government clarified that EV charging was not an electricity resale business but an ‘energy transformation service’.

This decision paved the way for private companies like GLIDA to build a charging network without regulatory bottlenecks.

With legal clarity secured, GLIDA launched its first public EV charging stations in Hyderabad in 2018. However, getting people to use them was another challenge.

Most Indian drivers were used to petrol pumps with attendants. GLIDA’s EV charging stations, like all other EV charging stations across the world, however, were operating on the D-I-Y (Do It Yourself) model.

“We had to work to modify consumer behaviour. So, we made our services free for an entire year,” shares Awadhesh.

By August 2019, when its paid services started, GLIDA had already built a small yet loyal customer base. In its first year alone, the venture served over 80 customers.

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THE PRESENT:

Today, the company has a registered base of over 50,000 customers across India, marking a remarkable expansion and endorsement of the business model over the years.

GLIDA is no longer a newcomer testing the waters of an emerging sector in the Indian startup ecosystem. It is a leading Charge Point Operator (CPO) in India, with:

• Over 950 charging points across 38 cities in 17 states.
• Presence on 17 national highways, improving access to clean transportation.
• A 24/7 customer service team resolving more than 90% of complaints—a key market differentiator.
• 75,000+ downloads on the GLIDA mobile app (including Android and iOS), which helps users locate charging points and make seamless payments.
  

GLIDA’s strategy has always been to focus on high-density commuting spots—shopping malls, metro stations, food joints, commercial spaces, and public parking areas.

Instead of targeting two-wheelers and three-wheelers, the company prioritises four-wheelers and commercial EVs, such as buses and trucks, the segment with a greater need for public charging and higher energy requirements.

GLIDA has also grown rapidly in terms of revenue and network expansion, achieving an impressive CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of around 133% over the past six years - one of the highest in the Indian EV charging industry.

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CUSTOMER-CENTRICITY & SUSTAINABILITY:

One of the biggest reasons for GLIDA’s success is its customer-first approach. The company actively uses customer feedback to improve its services.

For example, in its early days, some chargers were installed at car dealerships, which were closed at night, making EV charging unavailable after hours. GLIDA quickly adapted, focusing on 24/7 locations instead.

Similarly, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when installation work of new charging points slowed, GLIDA’s network proved invaluable for essential services running on electric vehicles. 

This customer-centric approach has earned GLIDA national recognition.

The company was recently featured in JioHotstar’s "Brands of Tomorrow" show, a prestigious platform showcasing India’s most promising startups that are redefining their industries.

“We don’t just see ourselves as a Charge Point Operator. We are enablers of electric mobility in India,” Awadhesh states with confidence.

Another standout feature of GLIDA is its user-friendly payment system with multiple options.

Unlike many of its competitors that lock users into ‘closed-loop’ wallets, GLIDA partnered with Pine Labs to introduce RuPay-enabled co-branded prepaid cards.

“Adding prepaid cards as one of our payment options was a game-changer. Users can recharge the card and use it across many platforms—not just for EV charging on our platform but for other third-party services too,” says Mr. Jha.

Even better, customers can withdraw their balance anytime, ensuring they never feel trapped. GLIDA also allows payments via QR codes and its mobile app, offering unparalleled flexibility.

While building EV infrastructure was a challenge, ensuring it ran on renewable energy was even harder. In many locations, EV charging stations were still powered by coal-based electricity, limiting their environmental impact.

To address this, GLIDA has started transitioning all its charging stations to clean and green power.

Hyderabad became the first city where GLIDA started converting its charging stations to operate through renewable energy. Within two years, the aim is to extend this transition across all GLIDA charging points in India.

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THE ROAD AHEAD:

Despite its success, GLIDA faces new challenges. With the rapid growth of electric vehicles, the demand for faster and more efficient EV charging stations is increasing.

“We’re now shifting from standalone chargers to EV charging hubs, where multiple vehicles can charge simultaneously,” Awadhesh announces.

Another major challenge is improving EV infrastructure along highways, where power availability is inconsistent. GLIDA is working on many innovative solutions to ensure a stable power supply even in remote locations.

The future of electric mobility in India looks bright, with the EV charging market expected to reach $5.69 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 39.1%.

As one of the first players in the market, GLIDA is well-positioned to capitalise on this growth. The company is focusing on three key areas for future expansion –

• Expanding Modular Charging Hubs: Building large-scale charging stations where multiple vehicles can be charged at the same time.
• 100% Green Energy Transition: Eliminating reliance on fossil-fuel-based electricity.
• Advancing Charging Technology: Partnering with manufacturers to improve charger quality and ensure 24/7 uptime.
  

GLIDA’s journey—from an ambitious idea sparked by Delhi’s air pollution crisis to an industry leader in EV charging—is proof that the Indian startup ecosystem is capable of driving real change.

As India embraces electric vehicles, ventures like GLIDA, operating like a startup, are proving that the shift to clean mobility isn’t just possible—it’s already happening.

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