Uber India plans to expand EV Fleet within two years

Ride-hailing app, Uber plans to quadruple its electric vehicles fleet in India by the end of the year, leveraging strategic partnerships across the ecosystem, its top country executive told a newspaper.

Uber has more than 350 electric vehicles and plans to expand that to 1,500 by year-end.

Pradeep Parameswaran, President, Uber India South Asia said the company looks at India as a growth market for the next ten years as it continues to partner with the auto industry and startups to launch new products, especially in the electric mobility space.

“We believe that the original equipment manufacturers (OEM) industry in India is very evolved and robust. Our strategy is to actively partner with OEMs, financiers and technology service providers for charging infrastructure that are building these form factors and bring in our rider base, safety, and marketplace technology,” Parameswaran said.

Electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers are already commercially feasible, but electric four-wheelers may take at least three years or longer to monetize, he said.

The company has already piloted electric autos in Chandigarh with SUN Mobility, where the EV platform offers swappable batteries and interchange stations to select OEMs.

Uber has also tied up with e-cycle sharing app Yulu to offer bicycle rentals to customers in Bengaluru. It has also teamed up with the Mahindra Group to launch EVs in Hyderabad.

Talking about Uber’s expansion beyond its core ride-hailing business, Parameswaran said that the company believes it does not need to be the vertical service provider for every mode and use-case.

Outside of China, India has the most vibrant mobility ecosystem in the world. A number of mobility players that have scaled in the last two years — from Bounce, Vogo, Rapido, Quick Ride — we are actively considering ways to expand our relevance through partnerships,” says Prameshwaran.