Sourabh Saini, a delivery driver for Indian online supermarket BigBasket, is thrilled by the attention he gets as he zips around Noida, a satellite city on the outskirts of Delhi, in his three-wheeled electric van.
“I like how my electric van always gets noticed,” said Mr Saini, who made the switch from fossil fuels about eight months ago as part of BigBasket’s push to electrify 90 per cent of its fleet. “Customers are surprised at how silent it is. They get curious about my experience of driving an EV and start asking about its price and range.”
That makes him somewhat of a novelty in India, where BigBasket and online companies Amazon.com and Flipkart are struggling to source enough vehicles to meet ambitious targets to electrify their delivery fleets.
“It’s not plug and play,” said Mahesh Pratap Singh, head of sustainability and responsibility at Flipkart. “When we scanned the landscape, there wasn’t much from a supply and reliability perspective, or a viable commercial option out there. That led us to believe you’ve got to put one big bold ambition out there and really nudge the entire ecosystem and shape it, rather than just being a consumer.”
When we scanned the landscape, there wasn’t much from a supply and reliability perspective, or a viable commercial option out there
Mahesh Pratap Singh,
head of sustainability and responsibility, Flipkart
The nature of online delivery operations – quick trips from a central hub where a standard charging solution can be installed – is well suited to EV adoption, overcoming the range anxiety and shortage of charging infrastructure that has proven a roadblock to general take-up.
Electric vehicles account for less than 1 per cent of India’s annual car sales, compared to about 6 per cent in China.
But India’s delivery companies are finding there aren’t many models available that can be deployed at scale, and what supply there is can’t keep up with demand.
Maruti Suzuki India, the country's biggest auto maker, doesn’t make any electric-powered cars, having said the cost of an EV puts them beyond most buyers.
India’s largest two-wheeler maker, Hero MotoCorp, will only have its first electric scooter on the market around March. Tata Motors, a leader in electric passenger cars with its top-selling Nexon, doesn’t have an electric small commercial vehicle of the type usually used in last-mile delivery.
Tata has begun developing electric small commercial vehicles because of the sector’s “strong” potential, said Girish Wagh, president of the auto maker’s commercial vehicle unit.
That leaves Amazon, Flipkart and BigBasket mostly relying on Mahindra & Mahindra’s Treo Zor, a three-wheeled van that costs 273,000 rupees ($3,670) and has sold about 1,000 units in the five months since deliveries started in November. Mahindra produces about 400 Treo Zor vans a month.
“There aren’t enough quality manufacturers making electric vehicles today,” said Olaf Sakkers, general partner and co-founder of venture capital firm RedBlue Capital, which has invested in two Indian EV start-ups. “E-commerce companies like Amazon, Flipkart are single-minded about becoming electric but the biggest problem is supply.”
Amazon aims to have 10,000 EVs delivering parcels in India by 2025, while Walmart’s Flipkart said it will deploy more than 25,000 EVs and be fully electric by 2030. BigBasket, a unit of Tata Group, has pledged to meet its 90 per cent EV target within three years.
E-commerce companies like Amazon, Flipkart are single-minded about becoming electric but the biggest problem is supply
Olaf Sakkers,
general partner and co-founder, RedBlue Capital
Flipkart and Amazon have both tied up with Mahindra Electric Mobility for three-wheelers and Hero Electric Vehicles for scooters.
The electrification of delivery fleets is taking time in North America as well. Amazon has ordered 100,000 electric vans from start-up Rivian Automotive, which last month pushed back the production of its debut vehicle because of supply chain bottlenecks.
Walmart Canada is seeking to convert 20 per cent of its fleet to electric vehicles by the end of 2022 and has reserved 130 Tesla Semi trucks, which haven’t started production yet.
Early moves into EV fleets in India were also plagued by poor designs that couldn’t withstand monsoon rains and notoriously bumpy roads.
When BigBasket began an EV test run in 2017, the swappable batteries weren’t totally waterproof and some caught fire in accidents. The vehicles sometimes ran out of charge and had to be towed back to the depot, and the low-slung battery packs often became submerged in water-filled potholes during monsoons.
BigBasket worked with auto makers to produce fireproof and waterproof swappable batteries that are robust and durable across harsh working environments and the vehicles are now equipped with devices to track how much charge is left, said KB Nagaraju, chief customer officer at BigBasket.
Financing and a lack of incentives are also hampering the electrification of the delivery fleets. Unsure about the new technology and the resale value of EVs in the event of loan defaults, banks are reluctant to lend, and if they do they charge higher interest rates, said BigBasket’s Mr Nagaraju.
Meantime, a 100 billion rupee incentive programme launched in 2019 has failed to meet its targets. Just 19,064 three-wheelers were sold compared to the target of 500,000 and only 74,634 two-wheelers, versus the goal of 1 million.
“Subsidies available currently are still inadequate to bridge the price gap between an average internal combustion vehicle used in commercial fleets and a comparable EV,” said Allen Tom Abraham, an analyst at BloombergNEF. “In India, even though there are very ambitious federal and state-level targets for EV deployment, sales of electric buses, taxis and light-trucks are yet to take off.”
Despite the roadblocks, Saini, the delivery driver, is a convert.
THE BIO
BIO:
Born in RAK on December 9, 1983
Lives in Abu Dhabi with her family
She graduated from Emirates University in 2007 with a BA in architectural engineering
Her motto in life is her grandmother’s saying “That who created you will not have you get lost”
Her ambition is to spread UAE’s culture of love and acceptance through serving coffee, the country’s traditional coffee in particular.
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
Teaching your child to save
Pre-school (three - five years)
You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.
Early childhood (six - eight years)
Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.
Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)
Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.
Young teens (12 - 14 years)
Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.
Teenage (15 - 18 years)
Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.
Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)
Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.
* JP Morgan Private Bank
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
The specs: 2018 Ducati SuperSport S
Price, base / as tested: Dh74,900 / Dh85,900
Engine: 937cc
Transmission: Six-speed gearbox
Power: 110hp @ 9,000rpm
Torque: 93Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 5.9L / 100km
The%20specs
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Results
United States beat UAE by three wickets
United States beat Scotland by 35 runs
UAE v Scotland – no result
United States beat UAE by 98 runs
Scotland beat United States by four wickets
Fixtures
Sunday, 10am, ICC Academy, Dubai - UAE v Scotland
Admission is free
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Record breaker
- The most total field goals made in NBA history, as well as the most consecutive games scoring 10 or more points
- The only player in NBA history to reach 10,000 rebounds and 10,000 assists
- Four-time regular season MVP and four-time NBA Finals MVP
- Six-time NBA All-Defensive selection. Rookie of the Year in 2004
- The most All-NBA selections with 21 in a row, including a record 13 first team selections
- The most consecutive All-Star selections with 21
- The only player to play alongside his son; Bronny James was chosen by the Lakers in the 2024 NBA draft
Inside%20Out%202
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Warlight,
Michael Ondaatje, Knopf
Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
First Person
Richard Flanagan
Chatto & Windus
The%20specs
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Profile of VoucherSkout
Date of launch: November 2016
Founder: David Tobias
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers
Sector: Technology
Size: 18 employees
Stage: Embarking on a Series A round to raise $5 million in the first quarter of 2019 with a 20 per cent stake
Investors: Seed round was self-funded with “millions of dollars”
The Africa Institute 101
Housed on the same site as the original Africa Hall, which first hosted an Arab-African Symposium in 1976, the newly renovated building will be home to a think tank and postgraduate studies hub (it will offer master’s and PhD programmes). The centre will focus on both the historical and contemporary links between Africa and the Gulf, and will serve as a meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, plays, musical performances and more. In fact, today it is hosting a symposium – 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction that will look at the six decades of Frank Bowling’s career, as well as those of his contemporaries that invested social, cultural and personal meaning into abstraction.
Bullet%20Train
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UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
The biog
Name: Ayisha Abdulrahman Gareb
Age: 57
From: Kalba
Occupation: Mukrema, though she washes bodies without charge
Favourite things to do: Visiting patients at the hospital and give them the support they need.
Role model: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women's Union, Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation and President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
