Home-grown e-commerce marketplace, Flipkart on Tuesday announced its partnership with Mahindra Logistics Limited (MLL) to help fast track deployment of electric vehicles across its logistics fleet in the country. Flipkart has committed to 100% electric mobility in its logistics fleet and will deploy more than 25,000 electric vehicles (EVs) by 2030.
Mahindra Logistics will play a significant role in working with various OEMs and help Flipkart’s sustainable transition to EVs. MLL through EDEL will enable Flipkart to build a green supply chain by deploying a large fleet of EVs and creating a conducive environment for EV deployment and operations across the country. This includes building supporting infrastructure and technology such as charging stations and parking lots, training workforce, route planning and even battery swapping stations, which will come shortly.
Another key focus area will be technology and control tower operations to enable greater efficiency and cost competitiveness. Flipkart has already partnered with many OEMs and introduced two and three-wheeled electric vehicles in its supply chain. The company’s partnership with MLL EDEL will further propel this momentum and help in deployment at a national scale, further enhanced by infrastructure and technology support that spans charging, tracking, asset, safety, and cost.
Hemant Badri, SVP Supply Chain, Flipkart Group, said, “Electrification of the logistics fleet is an important part of Flipkart’s larger sustainability goal and a key focus area for the company. Through collective efforts, we aim to build and support solutions that boost EV adoption across the country and gradually make a 100% transition to EVs in our logistics fleet.”
Rampraveen Swaminathan, CEO & MD, MLL, said, “Mahindra Logistics is deeply committed to sustainability, in line with our RISE philosophy. The EV based last-mile delivery service EDEL is aligned to this and provides customers with a sustainable, cost-competitive and technology-enabled last-mile delivery solution. Our focus is on expanding our network based on our deep partnership with large enterprise customers. We are pleased about this engagement with Flipkart and look forward to partnering with them.”
Flipkart has recently announced its partnership with leading electric vehicle manufacturers, including Hero Electric, Mahindra Electric and Piaggio, to deploy EVs in its logistics fleet across the country. In line with its sustainability vision, the company has also been working closely with several ecosystem partners on many aspects of electric mobility, including vehicle design, range, load capacity etc., to build customised vehicles that are best suited for the e-commerce industry.