Indian taxi-hailing company Ola, has today announced its “Mission: Electric”, under which it has committed to adding 10,000 e-rickshaws and electric auto-rickshaws in its service in the next one year. These electric vehicles will be deployed in three cities, but Ola has not disclosed their names so far.
The company is in discussion with various state governments to create a policy environment for the deployment of electric three wheelers. Ola is also in talks with OEM partners and EV innovators globally to execute its plan of bringing vehicles on roads in a planned and phased manner.
Speaking about the taxi-hailing company’s plan to add 10,000 e-rickshaws in next one year, Bhavish Aggarwal, Co-Founder and CEO of Ola said, ”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.”
The company further said that it plans to bring one million electric vehicles on road by 2021. To achieve its goal, Ola will be working with a number of driver-partners, cities, vehicle manufacturers, and battery companies.
Th company’s first electric vehicle project was launched in Nagpur in May 2017 and includes electric cabs, electric auto-rickshaws, electric buses, rooftop solar installation, charging stations and battery swapping experiments. The company said that with its EV program in Nagpur it has gained an insight into effectively managing vehicles, batteries and operations.
The company’s CEO Bhavish Aggarwal also spoke about Ola’s EV program in Nagpur. He said, “Less than a year ago, we launched India’s first multi-modal electric pilot in Nagpur. After more than 4 million electric kilometers travelled 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.”
