E-commerce giant Amazon India announced a partnership with automaker Mahindra Electric Mobility Ltd (Mahindra Electric) today, taking an important step towards making its delivery fleet electric.
Last year, Amazon India had announced that its fleet of delivery vehicles will include 10,000 electric vehicles (EVs) by 2025 in India. In addition to these EVs Amazon had made a global commitment to add 100,000 EVs in the delivery fleet by 2030 as announced in the Climate Pledge signed by the company.
“We are committed to building a supply chain that will minimize the environmental impact of our operations. The expansion of our electric vehicle fleet to 10,000 vehicles by 2025 is an integral milestone in our journey to become a sustainability leader in the industry,” said Akhil Saxena, VP, Customer Fulfilment Operations, APAC, MENA & LATAM, Amazon.
Mahindra’s electric three-wheeler, Treo Zor have already been deployed in seven cities by Amazon India so far --including Bengaluru, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bhopal, Indore and Lucknow with Amazon India’s network of Delivery Service Partners.
Electric three-wheeler, Mahindra Treo Zor. Image Source: Mahindra Electric Mobility.
Commenting on the partnership, Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport & Highways, Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises, Government of India said: “The partnership between Amazon India and Mahindra Electric is a welcome step which reaffirms India’s significant progress in the e-mobility industry, and highlights the role of auto makers and e-commerce companies to achieve our environmental sustainability goals.”
Mr. Gadkari affirmed that the government’s efforts to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles in the country, through policy support and efforts in setting up necessary EV infrastructure will help more companies adopt e-mobility.
“India’s dynamic public-and private-sector leadership, entrepreneurial culture, ability to build world-class infrastructure, and a unique confluence of IT and manufacturing skills will enable us to take a global leadership position in advanced mobility solutions,” he added.
In September 2019, Amazon became the first company to sign the Climate Pledge – which states the company will be net-zero carbon by 2040 across its businesses by 2040. By taking these steps the companies’ signatory to the pledge not only commit to decarbonizing but also plat a crucial role in stimulating investment in the development of low-carbon products and services which will enable the company to reach its stated sustainability goals.
“In support of The Climate Pledge commitment to be net-zero carbon by 2040, 10,000 Amazon custom electric delivery vehicles will be on the road delivering to customers worldwide as early as 2022 and all 100,000 by 2030,” the company said.
Speaking of the partnership, Mahesh Babu, MD & CEO, Mahindra Electric Mobility Ltd said, “We believe, this will redefine India’s logistics and last-mile delivery needs and at the same time help Mahindra and Amazon to achieve our sustainability goals.”
“We are happy that this made-in-India electric cargo will contribute towards Amazon’s delivery partner fleet transformation towards EVs in the country. The success of our Treo range of three-wheelers has proved that electric vehicles in the last mile segment is a win-win solution for our customers as well as the larger society,” Mr. Babu added.
- By Shraddha Kakade
Asst. Editor, Emerging Technology News.