EESL FLOATS SECOND TENDER FOR ACQUIRING 10,000 EVs

Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) has floated a second tender to procure an additional 10,000 electric vehicles as part of the government’s national e-Mobility Programme launched earlier. In 2017, the company had come out with a similar tender for 10,000 electric vehicles (EVs) which was won by Tata Motors. The winning bid was also matched by Mahindra & Mahindra. So far, both companies have delivered around 500 such vehicles. These EVs will be leased to government departments and various ministries to replace their existing fleet of petrol- and diesel-run vehicles.

According to an official statement by the Ministry of Power, 20,000 electric cars will help save over 5 crore litres of fuel every year and a reduction of 5.6 lakh tonne of annual carbon dioxide emissions. “Electric vehicles makes sense from the point of view of both the environment and the economy. The future is electric. My message to the industry is to come and invest in manufacturing of e-vehicles and batteries,” said Shri R K Singh, the Minister of State (IC) for Power and New & Renewable Energy while launching the National e-Mobility Programme. He added that the per kilometre cost for an electric vehicle is just Rs 0.85 as compared to Rs 6.5 for normal cars and the switch to electric will also help the country reduce expensive petroleum imports.

Source: www.fortuneindia.com