The transport sector is the third largest contributor to carbon emissions in India. So, several States nationwide have been attempting to decarbonise the sector with multipronged strategies–one of them is to reduce public transport’s carbon footprint.
Come April, Chennai would be introduced to a new fleet of 500 electric buses that the State has procured for its public transport corporation–MTC Chennai Ltd. This would make Tamil Nadu the fifth State after Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra and Delhi to deploy e-buses as part of the State’s transport sector decarbonisation efforts.
These 500 buses are the first of a three-phased induction of a total 1,300 into the city’s public transport system by the end of the year. An interesting aspect of this process has been the procurement and operation and maintenance of these buses–they have been procured at what is called the gross cost contract (GCC) model, which allows the MTC to pay the supplier and the operator a per kilometre rate for running the buses.
Tamil Nadu’s Additional Chief Secretary (Transport) K. Phanindra Reddy explains why the State has ventured into this model, the government’s future plans on integrating e-buses into other public transport units, the challenges to standardising charging and battery infrastructure, and more.
There has been much hype about decarbonising transport, particularly the transport system across India. State Transport Undertakings like [those] in Tamil Nadu have assured the induction of the e-buses into their fleets, with announcements for such plans in Chennai, Madurai, Coimbatore. Where do things stand at the moment?
We have started procurement of buses a bit late, but, both on [sic] the technology front and the procurement model are new to us. We have adopted the GCC model of procurement where we will be selecting a vendor and paying [him] only per kilometer cost.
There is no capital cost outgo for the Corporation. So, this is under a World Bank programme wherein, we have signed a performance agreement with the World Bank, and it’s between the MTC [Metropolitan Transport Corporation] and the [State] government. The MTC will deliver on the performance parameters. And the government would give grants to MTC. In the first stage, MTC has procured about 500 buses under the GCC contract method, and we are expecting these buses to roll out by April.
They will be coming to the roads by April 2025. And, within 2 to 3 months, all the 500 will be coming. That is the expectation. The second procurement under the GCC will also be coming to the market soon, again for another 500 buses.
We have already come out with a bid for procuring 500 buses, under the KfW funding; out of 500, 300 will be for Chennai and there will be 120 for Coimbatore and 80 for Madurai. Here, we have followed a different method. It is capital cost plus O&M (operation and maintenance) where the same vendor would be supplying and also will be maintaining the buses but we will be paying capital cost upfront and thereafter, the vendor would be maintaining the buses over the life of the buses. And they will be providing the driver also and the Corporation will be providing the conductors. So, this is the plan.
But why are you opting for two different procurement models?
We want to test both the models–how they work in terms of the commercial terms and in terms of the O&M [operation & maintenance] obligations. So these are two models available. In both the cases, as you can see, the O&M is outsourced. Basically, to ensure that since this is a new technology, you will not take the technology risk on us and we would like to have this with the vendor for the time being till such time as the technology matures.
Why is the GCC model preferred?
It is basically because [of] the technology risk. Unlike the ICE engines, we are not very conversant with how EV performs and how the maintenance problems would arise and how you could ensure efficiency. We are, I think, one of the top States in terms of the ICE engine maintenance. We get a mileage of five plus per kilometer whereas we are not very sure about that in EVs. We just don’t have any knowledge or experience in maintenance. So, till such time as we become conversant with EV machines, we thought we will have it in the GCC method.
What is the arrangement with regard to land and [other aspects] charging infrastructure? Would it be aligned with existing petrol and gas stations of STUs?
We have our own depots–some of the depots earmarked for EV buses. So, [in] those depots, space will be allocated to the vendors and they will be operating out of those depots.
As you procure more and more (EV buses), you will also [be decommissioning]?
Yes. In any case, we will be decommissioning, as you know, the ICE infrastructure. So that will be available for EV.
Have you considered the long-term implications of relying on the charging infrastructure being provided by the automaker in the absence of standardisation of bot battery technology and charging infrastructure?
These are imponderables, as of today. This is the reason why we have gone the GCC way. So, till such time as the technology matures and gets standardised, the risk is assigned to the vendor.
Would it not be beneficial to ensure [that] all EV makers come together to standardise?
It’s a competitive market and it did not happen in ICE engines. Standardisation did not happen in ICE engines [that way] and I do not expect that to happen in a hurry in EV. It may take some time.
With different battery technologies on the road, each bus will have to dock at a specific automaker’s facility to swap batteries. So, is there any effort to unify battery technology as well? And are there models of battery swapping infrastructure?
There are two parts. As an operator, I know we have secured our position in terms of having our own charging stations. Now, your question is more relevant for individual users of cars, three-wheelers or standalone bus operators. Then, we would like to have charging stations, which are not monopolised, which are standardised and swappable. As far as the big operators like State Transport Undertakings (STUs) are concerned, I think it is standardised.
By let’s say 2028, how many EVs will be operated by STUs?
Straightaway, we can look at about 1,300 by the end of calendar year 2025 and after that, I think we can expect about 500 to 750 every year. Initially, we’ll be able to look at only the town service because we will be having battery capacity limitations. Thereafter, we can consider the long-distance intercity buses.
Published – March 25, 2025 07:00 am IST
