Amazon India, SUN Mobility partners to expand EVs with battery-swap tech deployment
Amazon India has announced that it has partnered with SUN Mobility to expand the deployment of EVs integrated with battery swapping technology for its transportation and logistics services.
These EVs will contribute to Amazon India's commitment to adding 10,000 electric vehicles to its India delivery fleet by 2025, announced in 2020.
Leveraging SUN Mobility's MaaS (mobility-as-a-service) offering, the deployment will provide Amazon India and its delivery service partners (DSPs) with a state-of-the-art electric mobility solution that is integrated with smart batteries, along with access to a wide network of SWAP POINTS.
With battery swapping technology, the discharged battery can be swapped out for a fully charged unit, removing the delay in recharging. As part of an existing pilot program, SUN Mobility had already successfully deployed over 100 loaders powered by swappable batteries with Amazon India's delivery network partners for rapid deliveries, which the two companies now plan to replicate in more metro cities and other operational areas.
Commenting on the deployment, Abhinav Singh, Director - Customer Fulfilment, Supply Chain and Global Specialty Fulfilment, Amazon India said: "The collaboration with SUN Mobility represents another step in our journey towards reducing carbon emissions and the environmental impact of delivery operations. We will continue to invest in the electrification of our delivery fleet as we work towards the goal of adding 10,000 EVs across partner platforms to our fleet by 2025. With the government also encouraging the development of sustainable and innovative business models for 'Battery or Energy as a Service', we are committed to supporting India's progress in the e-mobility industry to achieve its environmental sustainability goals."
Chetan Maini, Co-Founder, and Chairman of SUN Mobility said, "We are delighted by the opportunity of collaborating with an e-commerce giant like Amazon India. We believe that this deployment will enable us to tangibly impact the rapidly growing e-commerce and delivery segment by making 'refueling' of electric vehicles faster, cheaper, and more convenient for fleet operators. Our comprehensive MaaS offering will offer robust and supportive infrastructure that will cater to the new mobility paradigm, making India a global differentiator and a leader in this transformation of mobility."
SUN Mobility aims to onboard over a million vehicles by 2025, the accomplishment of which will be accelerated through its MaaS offering. The company has already commenced the deployment of its solutions to eCommerce and goods delivery players across major cities such as Delhi NCR, Bangalore, and Chandigarh and plans to further expand to other cities across the country.
