SmartE is growing its network to serve better the last-mile commuters
SmartE: Provides electric mobility services and offering shared last-mile connectivity in India’s Capital
It would not be wrong to say that 2 things drives the Delhi and those are- The Delhi Metro and The last-mile commuting electric 3-wheeler. Regarding the Delhi metro we will later get to know in more details but now lets have an overview of electric 3 wheeler’s largest network company.
As per old records and newspaper, electric 3 wheeler came into pictures in 2010. During that time it used to import from China in ready to assembly condition with lead-acid battery. In 2014 delhi court had banned these due to a mishappening but in 2015 court overruled the own rule. Since then it’s started growing it’s network.
SmartE:
Founder- Goldie Srivastava.
Founder- Goldie Srivastava.
In the month of October 2015, SmartE has started its business with 30 e-rickshaw from Medipur Metro Station. All those 30 e-rickshaws were driven by woman driver. All the e-rickshaw were fitted with GPS navigation system and camera which made it safe and secure. It was the start of the journey when Delhi Government has also given green flag to electric rickshaw. More than 1000 SmartE vehicle are on the road and SmartE is the official last-mile connectivity partner to Delhi Metro,
offering its services across multiple metro stations in Delhi, Gurugram and Faridabad.
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| Goldie Srivastava. Image Credit- Yourstory |
Investors & Partners helped company to grow:
Since start was good for the SmartE and Investor from India as well as from outside countries predicted it’s future scope. Last-mile connectivity was a $42-billion opportunity in the country
and was growing at a compound annual growth rate of 11 percent.
Kinetic Green partnership with SmartE:
September 2017, On of the most selling 3 wheeler company Kinetic branch Kinetic Green did partnership with SmartE to launch 10,000 numbers of electric vehicles (mostly 3 wheeler e rickshaw) in different part of India in 18 months. This partnership started with the launch of first batch of 1000 e-rickshaw for Delhi Metro in same month.
Delhi Metro (DRMC)
4 September 2017, Minister of Road Transport & Highways, Nitin Gadkari flagged off the service of 1000 e-rickshaw in partnership with Delhi Metro from Huda City Center Metro Station, Gurugram. The aim was to make last-mile ride for metro commuter hassle fee, comfortable, less costly and environment friendly. SmartE started providing service in Gurugram and Faridabad.
Fare was also marginal, Rs. 10/- for first 2 km and Rs. 5/- thereafter for each km. About 60 million Indians hop on an e-rickshaw every day, analysts estimate.
SmarE is managing its service well and passenger’s safety has the prime concern for the company. GPS devices and camera is installed in the vehicle. They also insist driver to wear the company’s dress and provide good services.
SmarE is managing its service well and passenger’s safety has the prime concern for the company. GPS devices and camera is installed in the vehicle. They also insist driver to wear the company’s dress and provide good services.
Association with Mahindra Electric:
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| Mahindra Electric and SmartE made a deal for 1000 e-rickshaw launch by March 2019 |
In December 2018, SmartE joined hand with the Mahindra Electric. Mahindra Electric is the electric vehicle manufacturing division of Mahindra and Mahindra who is the first electric vehicle manufacturer in India. Both company together agreed to bring 1000 Treo electric rickshaw on road by March 2019 under the network of SmartE. Mahindra also agreed to setup the sufficient charging stations for those 1000 vehicles. Now, it August 2019 and both companies have already completed the target.
Investment from Mitsui & Co.:
A Japan based company Mitsui & Co. invested $14 million (Rs. 963 million) in SmartE to fuel its growth for coming next four years. This huge amount will help company to reach 50,000 number of 3 wheelers in coming four years. During a media talk, Shinichiro Omachi, Managing Director of Mitsui & Co. India said, “Growing urbanization in Delhi-NCR is driving the demand for transportation, including first and last-mile services, placing a greater burden on the environment. We are proud to partner with SmartE, a true pioneer in the electric mobility service space, who shares our commitment to sustainable business development and alleviating pain points to improve living standards for communities.”
Lates News:
SmartE has appointed Palash Roy Chowdhury as its chairman and managing director in this week only.Palash Roy Chowdhury was the former Pratt & Whitney (P&W) India head and a non-executive Co-Founder of SmartE as well.He is having 18 years of experience working with United Technologies Corporation (UTC) and its aircraft engine unit, Pratt & Whitney, both in India and USA.
My Words:
India is now started working toward greener world and focusing on EVs. 3 wheeler market is the major contributor now in EV segment in India but it is also true that product in this market is non-standardize. Many of the electric 3 wheelers are still imported from China. Battery used in these 3 wheeler are mainly lead-acid battery. This whole segment need to standardize with the supply for good battery and electrical component fitted into it. Basic structure and overall design should be made compact and feasible for the mass production. Other issue is with the passenger capacity. The 3 wheeler which are in use at the metro stations are having passenger capacity of 4 but the in actual loading condition is far away from the reality. This problem can be shorted out by providing the proper parking space for these 3 wheeler at metro station as well as at their destination. By doing this thing definitely the considerable amount of time will be saved and number of trip will increase. These are the some minor steps but to make a smart and greener city this is required.
