Hyderabad: Olectra Greentech is gearing up for a broader electric commercial vehicle push, driven by a new indigenous bus platform, a foray into electric trucks with its first locally developed truck range and battery localisation as it looks to reduce dependence on Chinese partner BYD’s technology, deepen localisation and evaluates options for a foray into the electric car segment after a few years.“We were dependent on BYD because all our technologies were dependent on BYD. So we kick-started new-generation bus and truck platforms. Both these are getting launched from the third quarter of FY27,” Olectra Greentech managing director Mahesh Babu told TOI, adding that this will be followed by new offerings every quarter for six quarters.“It is a next-generation bus platform. It is all our own design, development and testing. The first phase of Sitarampur plant was commissioned last quarter and now the new line is ready. We can manufacture and scale up faster,” he said.The plant, set up at an investment of ₹400 crore, has a capacity to make 2,500 buses per annum in one shift, with a truck line planned at the same plant with an annual capacity of about 1,200 units. The company plans to invest an additional ₹450 crore in product development over this year and the next.He said Olectra will continue using BYD technology for an existing tender pipeline of about 8,000 buses and for private customers seeking that product option, but its own platform will target state transport undertaking tenders under PM E-DRIVE and PM e-Sewa localisation requirements.He said the initial truck range will cover 28-tonne to 55-tonne applications, including tippers and tractor-trailers, before moving into intermediate commercial vehicles. Babu said trucks will target B2B and B2C customers, with dealer selection planned by year-end.The company is also evaluating battery ecosystem investments, from cell to pack, to become self-reliant. On a possible foray into passenger cars, he said the clear focus for the next three years is on buses and trucks.“Right now, we have nothing to announce on passenger cars, but in the distant horizon we are evaluating multiple options,” he said.He said the company is also eyeing exports but after domestic scale-up, with FY27 focused on India and FY28 on select overseas markets including the UK, Australia, Africa and GCC countries as the plant has the capacity to make export-ready left-hand-drive variants also.
