Vehicle aggregator Ola Cabs has today announced its ‘Mission Electric’ programme, under which the company aims to ride the upcoming surge in the electric mobility space. Ola plans to aggressively expand its area of operations and place 10,000 e-rickshaws and electric vehicles in key Indian cities by 2019 with an aim to enhance last-mile connectivity. A bigger game-plan will see it targeting rollout of a million EVs in India by 2021, a move which will give a huge boost to EV makers like Mahindra Electric and Tata Motors, among others.
The company is looking to harness the immense potential offered by electric three-wheelers, which can offer commuting in a better, faster and cost-effective manner. The decision comes on the basis of successful execution of its first pilot EV project, which has seen over 200 electric cars, e-rickshaws and electric autos plying in the city of Nagpur since May 2017. Ola aims to develop the Mission Electric as a platform to fulfil the daily transit needs of the millions of commuters across the country.
According to Bhavish Aggarwal, co-Founder and CEO, Ola Cabs, “Three-wheelers are a vital means of transportation and a source of livelihood for millions of people every day. It also represents an immediate opportunity to improve outcomes for all stakeholders while reducing pollution across towns and cities. Less than a year ago, we launched India’s first multi-modal electric pilot in Nagpur.
After more than 4 million electric kilometres traveled and many lessons learned, we are significantly expanding our commitment to electrify mobility in India. Ola leads by example and we look forward to working with state governments and other partners to introduce accessible, affordable, and sustainable mobility solutions at scale.”
A million electric Olas by 2021In line with its Mission Electric programme, Ola is planning introduction of a million shared EVs on the country’s roads by 2021, and improve outcomes for its driver partners, as well as work towards solving mobility issues in the country with environmentally sustainable solutions. Ola says it will work with driver-partners, cities, vehicle manufacturers, and battery companies to make sustainable technologies cost-effective and viable in daily mobility.
The EV program in Nagpur has provided Ola with significant insights into effectively managing vehicles, batteries, and operations. The company plans to continue its experimentation with ways to optimise batteries and charging, to develop a strong business model for EV deployment in India in the future.
The ride hailing major is in discussion with several state governments to create an appropriate policy environment to deploy electric three-wheelers. The company is also talking to OEM partners and EV innovators globally to bring vehicles on the road in a planned and phased manner.