Gentari receives first batch of Tata Ace EVs from 5,000-unit order

Clean energy solutions provider Gentari has received the first 100 Tata Ace EVs from its bulk order placed with Tata Motors last year. In 2022, Gentari, through its affiliated entity Amplus Power Supply, had signed an MoU with Tata Motors for purchase of 5,000 Tata Ace EVs over three years.

The MoU includes delivery of 1,000 units in the first year, for deployment in cities such as Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Kolkata. To mark the delivery of the first batch of 100 units in March and April this year, a vehicle handover ceremony was held at the 8th Smart Cities India Expo, which is underway at New Delhi’s Pragati Maidan from March 27-29, between Shah Yang Razalli, Gentari’s Chief Green Mobility Officer and Ashish Tandon, Senior General Manager, Product Line – SCV & PUs, Tata Motors.

After conducted stringent real-world tests, Tata Motors had unveiled the Tata Ace EV in May 2022. At launch in May 2022, the Tata Ace EV had received pre-bookings for 39,000 units and the company had signed MoUs with leading e-commerce companies and logistics service providers.

The Ace EV, the first product featuring Tata Motors’ Evogen powertrain, is powered by a 27kW (36hp) motor which develops 130Nm of peak torque. The zero-emission small commercial vehicle has a certified range of 154 kilometres, an advanced battery cooling system and regenerative braking system to boost the driving range. Designed for intra-city applications and targeted at e-commerce logistics and last-mile mobility operators, the Tata Ace EV has a cargo volume of 208 ft³ and gradeability of 22%, allowing easy ascent in fully loaded conditions.

In an effort to enable ease of ownership of the Tata Ace EV, on March 1, Tata Motors signed an MoU with State Bank of India to offer attractive financing solutions for the Ace EV including easy loan structured schemes, 90% funding of the on-road vehicle price and a loan tenure of up to six years.

At launch in May 2022, the Tata Ace EV had received pre-bookings for 39,000 units from e-commerce companies and logistics service providers.

Gentari expands VaaS offering

Gentari also expanded its Vehicle-as-a-Service (VaaS) offering through an MoU with electric mobility provider MoEVing Urban Technology to provide 1,000 three-wheeler and 500 four-wheeler electric cargo vehicles on subscription.

“High quality electric four-wheelers coming into the market opens a whole new segment to electrify in the urban delivery ecosystem. We are excited to work with Gentari to deploy three- and four-wheeler commercial EVs across India to reduce the carbon footprint of deliveries. With our operations, charging and maintenance footprint spanning across India, we hope to bring change on-ground and electrify deliveries for e-commerce, e-grocery, the logistics segment and now also large FMCG and traditional companies,” said Vikash Mishra, CEO, MoEVing.

Separately, Gentari also exchanged MoU documents with logistics company Gati KWE (Gati) to provide 500 electric cargo vehicles through its VaaS offering. Pirojshaw Sarkari, CEO of Gati, said: "We are committed to our vision to offer green express logistics solutions and support the government’s goal to cut the net carbon emissions to zero by 2070. As a part of our ESG initiatives, we have plans to convert our entire pickup and delivery fleet to alternative fuel by 2025. The collaboration with Gentari will help us accelerate the transition and attain our sustainability goals. We are committed to build a sustainable express logistics ecosystem."

Expansion to 4,000 EVs across 10 cities in 2023

Gentari’s green mobility efforts in India have achieved significant scale, with its VaaS offering having clocked three million clean kilometres, equivalent to more than 100 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions reduction, through its current fleet of 1,000 three-wheeler EVs serving third party logistics and ecommerce operators as well as private users.

In 2023, Gentari aims to further grow its EV fleet to more than 4,000 vehicles across 10 cities with a mix of three- and four-wheeler vehicles. Meanwhile, from a current network of seven charging hubs operating in four cities at the end of 2022, Gentari aims to grow its network to 10 cities in 2023, expanding the current 162 charging points deployed in 2022.

Gentari’s plans in India complement the company’s 2030 global aspirations in building a renewable energy capacity of 30-40 GW; supplying up to 1.2 mtpa of clean hydrogen; and becoming Asia Pacific’s preferred green mobility solutions provider by capturing 10% market share (around 25,000 charging points) across key markets in the region.

Sushil Purohit, Gentari’s Chief Executive Officer, who was also at the 8th Smart Cities India Expo, said: “We see vast potential in India’s increasingly decentralised energy infrastructure. This offers opportunities for global private players to participate in supporting India’s net zero goals. With a purpose to solve the world’s most pressing sustainable energy needs via our three core pillars – renewable energy, hydrogen and green mobility, Gentari believes this is the right time to grow our investments in India.”

He added, “Gentari has several initiatives in the pipeline. We look forward to announcing new developments soon and always welcome enquiries from like-minded entities on potential collaborations.”

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