Photo/Illutration Terra Motors Corp. Chairman Toru Tokushige demonstrates his company’s rapid electric vehicle charger in Tokyo’s Minato Ward on Sept. 26. (Takumi Wakai)

To jump-start Japan’s stagnant electric vehicle market, a charging network operator unveiled ambitious plans to install 1,000 rapid chargers in Tokyo over the next two years.

Terra Motors Corp. will set up 150-kilowatt chargers in the parking lots of supermarkets, convenience stores and other commercial facilities across the capital, the company announced on Sept. 26.

About 7.5 times faster than 20-kilowatt chargers that are common in Japan, Terra Motors’ devices can give a typical electric vehicle a range of 100 kilometers with a six-minute charge.

“We need as many charging stations as there are gas stations,” said Terra Motors Chairman Toru Tokushige. “Japan needs a change.”

He added the weak charging infrastructure is putting the brakes on Japanese drivers switching to EVs.

There are only 490 rapid chargers available in Tokyo due partly to the high installation cost of around 15 to 20 million yen ($100,000 to $134,000).

In comparison, there are around 1,000 gas stations in the region, typically equipped with multiple pumps, to serve the overwhelming majority of motorists who drive gasoline-fueled cars.

Terra Motors will install its 1,000 charging devices at no cost, including initial running costs, to the businesses hosting them.

Subsidies from the central and local governments can reduce the cost of the entire project to around 10 billion yen. The company says it will recoup the investment over time through profits from the charging fees users will pay.

Japan’s EV market has been growing much slower compared to Europe and the United States, and the rollout of a public charging infrastructure has been sluggish.

The government has allocated 30 billion yen since last fiscal year to subsidize the installation of chargers and is expected to further increase such support in the future.

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