BEST issues notice to Olectra Greentech for e-bus delivery delay

Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking has issued a showcause notice to electric bus maker Olectra Greentech for a delay in supplying air-conditioned (AC) single-decker buses.

In June 2022, BEST had placed an order for 2,100 buses from Olectra, which the company was to deliver within 18-24 months. With the deadline almost reached, the public body has received less than 10% of the buses, a BEST official said. “If they don’t meet the deadline, we will be forced to cancel the contract,” added the official.

An official from Olectra Greentech confirmed the company had delivered only 160 buses to BMC, with another 18 set to arrive in a week or so. The BEST official added that manufacturers are unable to meet deadlines because the demand for electric buses is huge. BEST currently has 160 e-buses manufactured by Olectra in its fleet.

The June 2022 order for 2,100 buses was valued at ₹3,675 crore. BEST also has a wet-lease contract with Olectra for another 2,400 electric buses over 12 years. In a wet-lease model, the operator provides the vehicles and drivers, and takes care of aspects such as maintenance and insurance.

Earlier this year, BEST had also scrapped a contract with Delhi-based Causis E-Mobility to supply 700 AC double-decker e-buses due to a delay of over a year. The civic body also has another order of 200 AC double-decker e-buses placed with Switch Mobility, a subsidiary of Chennai-based automaker Ashok Leyland. “As of now, 56 of these buses from Switch Mobility have arrived. However, this is also not running smoothly and we are monitoring the situation,” said the BEST official.

BEST operates 3,040 buses, which ferry three million passengers daily. It needs at least 3,000 more to meet its demand.