Macquarie To Fuel India’s EV Fleet Electrification With $1.5 Bn Investment

Australia’s Macquarie Group’s investment arm, Macquarie Asset Management, is set to inject $1.5 Bn (around INR 12,500 Cr) into India’s electric vehicle space via its recently unveiled platform Vertelo.

Vertelo will be providing end-to-end solutions for fleet electrification in India.

The company aims to accelerate the transition of fleets to electric vehicles and build a robust EV ecosystem by offering several solutions to customers, including leasing and financing, charging infrastructure and energy solutions, fleet management services, and end of vehicle life management.

The new platform has received anchor investment from the Green Climate Fund which has committed to invest up to $200 Mn.

Vertelo plans to invest $1.5 Bn over 10 years with an aim to achieve a potential greenhouse gas emissions reduction of 9.5 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalent.

The company lends support to India’s vehicle electrification target of achieving 40% electric buses and 70% electric commercial cars by 2030, it added.

“The transition to electric vehicles will bring significant benefits to India – increasing its energy independence and mitigating the impacts of climate change. Vertelo aims to play a key role in accelerating this transition by making it easy for its customers to realise the benefits of going electric immediately,” Abhishek Poddar, India Country Head of Macquarie Group, said.

Meanwhile, Vertelo has signed a long-term lease agreement with transport technology company Chalo Mobility, to supply 44 electric buses manufactured by JBM, a leading electric bus manufacturer in India, to operate in Mumbai.

Also, to meet the growing demand of customers, Vertelo has signed agreements with multiple OEMs including JBM and Eka Mobility to buy up to 2,000 electric buses from each partner over the next three to five years and with Tata Motors to buy up to 2,000 electric cars over the next three years.

Earlier this year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the government will place an increased focus on promoting electric vehicle (EV) adoption in India. The FM said that the government will promote adoption of electric buses for public transportation by introducing a payment security mechanism.

Earlier in August 2023, the Union Cabinet approved a new scheme under which 10,000 electric buses (ebuses) would be deployed in 169 cities on a public-private partnership (PPP) model.

Furthermore, in December 2023, India partnered with the US government and American philanthropic groups, as part of a $390 Mn joint financing mechanism, to deploy more than 50,000 electric buses on the country’s roads by 2027.