BPCL Forays into Electric Vehicle Business with Its ‘e-drive’ Initiative

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), has announced its arrival into the electric vehicle (EV) space with the launch of its “e-Drive” initiative - an innovative electric vehicle mobility model based on battery swapping, primarily being rolled out in Kochi and Lucknow.

This initiative was launched by D Rajkumar, Chairman & Managing director, BPCL from Chennai. Also present on the occasion were Prof Jhunjhunwala (IIT Madras) and Sulajja Firodia (MD, Kinetic Green).

In this model, the vehicle (3 wheelers) would be owned by BPCL’s partner, Kinetic Green. BPCL, with support from IIT Chennai, will offer smart lithium-ion batteries.

Launching the initiative, D. Rajkumar said: “With in-depth studies on the challenges and, further taking cognizance of available technology, demand, government regulations and the overall direction of energy transition, BPCL has embarked upon a new and unique model for EV mobility, the first of its kind in the country, ahead of competition.”

BPCL has presently launched this initiative in Lucknow and Kochi, and plans to scale up and outspread this model to other urban cities where such models can deliver an eloquent solution to urban e-mobility.

The initiative delivers a solution to all the key challenges faced by the drivers for owning and operating electric three wheelers. Drivers can approach the nearest BPCL retail outlets for exchanging their discharged batteries with charged batteries. This helps drivers who have been facing difficulties owing to the upfront cost of electric vehicles, range anxiety and the time spent on charging of the vehicles. BPCL swapping stations situated at their wide network of petrol pumps would address the need of charging infrastructure.