Hero Lectro, the EV arm of the Hero Motors Company (HMC), announced new partnerships with logistics service providers Fast Despatch Logistics and Turtle Mobility as part of a new ecosystem to enable greater use of e-mobility in last mile delivery. Under the partnership, Hero Lectro’s E Cargo bikes will be rolled out into the last mile delivery space by Fast Despatch Logistics.
While Fast Despatch Logistics (FDL) is a global last mile delivery logistics company which has recently marked its entry in India, Turtle Mobility is a startup that offers solutions for last mile delivery logistics needs including vehicles on lease.
Under the agreement between the parties, Hero Lectro’s E Cargo bikes are being procured by Turtle Mobility to be given out on lease to FDL. Fast Despatch Logistics also has plans to augment its fleet of E-bikes to up to 15,000 by the end of this year.
Notably, Hero Lectro recently launched its first E Cargo Bike Hero Lectro WINN and plans to introduce another E Cargo Bike shortly for India’s rapidly growing last mile delivery space which lacks purpose-built cargo vehicles. A light engineered E Bike with specially crafted storage and payload capacity such as Hero Lectro WINN offers a highly cost-effective solution by significantly lowering the cost per litre of goods storage space. With WINN, delivery agents can overcome the challenge of load limit associated with motorized two wheelers as well as performance anxiety associated with other electric vehicles.
“E Cargo Bikes are set to emerge as a game-changer for the last mile delivery space as they offer a huge potential for increasing per day shipment capacity and achieving cost optimisation for last mile service providers (LSPs) as compared to currently used ICE engine two wheelers. While a number of e commerce providers have expressed their intent to turn to e mobility, the industry also needs an ecosystem for implementing this change. Our partnership with FDL and Turtle Mobility is a step towards creating such an ecosystem under which logistics companies will be able to procure E Cargo Bikes on lease and roll them out in the last mile delivery space,” said Partha Choudhary, President and CEO, Hero Lectro Cargo.
The company is exploring more such opportunities and partnerships to engage with LSPs and enable a greater shift towards e mobility. Being more affordable, accessible to all age groups and more cost viable as compared to ICE engine vehicles, E Cargo bikes also offer a unique potential to generate more work opportunities for the self-employed.
Gurvinder Birk, CEO, Fast Despatch Logistics, said, “Having the best equipment is one of the major key factors to provide excellence in service. We believe Hero Lectro Winn has the capability in assisting us achieve this. We are extremely excited for FDL and Hero Lectro collaboration in rolling out Hero Lectro Winn in Hyderabad and furthermore very soon.”
“With a potential to significantly bring down cost per shipment, Cargo E Bikes are today the best bet for offering competitive advantage and cost optimization for last mile logistics providers. When rolled out on a major scale, E Bikes can edge out ICE vehicles in this space by ushering in major freight cost reduction. Not just for logistics companies, E Bikes also have huge potential for creating self-employment opportunities for unskilled workers in the informal sector which continues to form a bulk of the economy”.
Turtle Mobility Founder Kapil Gupta, said, “The use of E Cargo Bikes has become increasingly commonplace in Western countries for their multiple benefits including low carbon footprint, ease of access, low operational costs as well as cost optimisation for last mile deliveries. It is only a matter of time for Cargo E Bikes to become widely relevant in India as well. Our association with Hero Lectro and the viable ecosystem this creates between vehicle suppliers, leasers and last mile operators will help enable more LSPs convert their fleets to Cargo E Bikes. It will also help generate work opportunities for self-employed individuals in the informal sector by offering them a more affordable and easily accessible alternative to ICE vehicles”.
Adopting an E Cargo bike will help LSPs gain a significant cost advantage over their competitors by bringing down cost per shipment. An E bike also overcomes the challenge of skyrocketing fuel prices and comes with bare minimum operational costs. Not to forget the fact that riding an E Bike doesn’t require a license, which makes this vehicle more widely accessible to all sections of the population. Being a light engineered vehicle, it is also more amenable to women riders and enables direct opportunities for unskilled workers in the informal economy.