Flipkart has announced its partnership with Mahindra Logistics Limited (MLL), to help fast track deployment of electric vehicles across its logistics fleet in the country. In the past, Flipkart had committed to 100 per cent electric mobility in its logistics fleet and said it will deploy more than 25,000 electric vehicles by 2030. Towards the end of 2020, Mahindra Logistics had launched its own electric delivery brand EDEL, partnering with companies in the consumer and e-commerce segment to provide sustainable last-mile delivery across six cities in India.

Through the partnership with Flipkart, Mahindra Logistics will also look at creating a conducive environment for EV deployment and operations across the country. This includes building supporting infrastructure and technology such as charging stations and parking lots, training workforce, route planning, and even battery swapping stations in the near future.

“Electrification of the logistics fleet is an important part of Flipkart’s larger sustainability goal and a key focus area for the company. We are happy to have Mahindra Logistics on board as a logistics partner, who will play a major role in helping us achieve our vision of making our logistics fleet fully electric by 2030,” said Hemant Badri, senior vice president, supply chain, Flipkart Group.

EDEL, which currently operates in key metro cities, including Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Kolkata, and Hyderabad, will scale its operations to cover 20 cities by year-end, while facilitating Flipkart’s transition towards EVs.

“The EV-based last-mile delivery service EDEL provides customers with a sustainable, cost-competitive and technology enabled last-mile delivery solution. Our focus is on expanding our network based on our deep partnership with large enterprise customers. We are pleased about this engagement with Flipkart and look forward to partnering with them,” said Rampraveen Swaminathan, chief executive and managing director, MLL.

Flipkart also recently announced its partnership with leading electric vehicle manufacturers, including Hero Electric, Mahindra Electric and Piaggio, to deploy EVs in its logistics fleet across the country.