Australia-based Macquarie Group has launched an Electric Vehicle (EV) financing platform called Vertelo, which will offer financing, fleet management and charging infrastructure solutions.
While 95 percent of its $1.5-billion investment will focus on electrifying fleets of commercial vehicles, the remaining five percent of investment will go towards charging infrastructure and other requirements.
The new platform has received anchor investment from the Green Climate Fund, which has committed to invest up to $200 million.
As a first step on this journey, Vertelo has signed a long-term lease agreement with Chalo Mobility Pvt Ltd, a leading Indian transport technology company, 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.
Abhishek Poddar, India Country Head, Macquarie Group, said: “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.”
The company claimed that it lends support to India’s ambitious vehicle electrification target of achieving 40 percent electric buses and 70 percent electric commercial cars by 2030 and aligns well with the Indian Government’s vision for mobility in India revolving around the 7 Cs – Common, Connected, Convenient, Congestion-free, Charged, Clean, and Cutting-edge.
The new business will be led by Sandeep Gambhir who previously led the automotive leasing, mobility, and nonbank financial businesses for ORIX India for 11 years.
Sandeep Gambhir, Chief Executive Officer, Vertelo, said: “Vertelo aims to become a larger ecosystem player in the EV mobility landscape through its unique and comprehensive offering that covers the entire lifecycle of the underlying assets including upfront capital solution, charging infrastructure, maintenance and energy management, which helps it to partner with large OEMs, fleet operators, and other corporates, and accelerate fleet electrification in India.”
Vertelo is backed by the Green Climate Fund in partnership with Macquarie Asset Management, part of Macquarie Group. Macquarie Group is one of Australia’s ten largest companies and has been active in India for over 19 years – it has invested over $US2.5 billion in equity capital into Indian infrastructure.
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