Macquarie Asset Management launches Vertelo, a new $US 1.5 billion EV fleet solutions platform

Written By Darban Rawat

  • Macquarie Asset Management today launched Vertelo, a new fleet electrification solutions platform focused on accelerating large-scale adoption of electric vehicles in India.

  • The new platform has received anchor investment from the Green Climate Fund (GCF). Vertelo plans to mobilise $US 1.5 billion in the Indian e-mobility ecosystem over 10 years with the aim to achieve a potential lifetime reduction of ~9.5 MtCO2e of greenhouse gas emissions.

  • The new business lends support to India’s ambitious electric vehicles target and aligns well with the Indian Government’s vision for mobility revolving around the 7 Cs - Common, Connected, Convenient, Congestion-free, Charged, Clean, and Cutting-edge1

Macquarie Asset Management (MAM), part of Macquarie Group, has launched Vertelo, a new platform providing end-to-end solutions in fleet electrification space in India. The company aims to accelerate the transition of fleets to electric vehicles and build a robust EV ecosystem by offering bespoke solutions to customers including leasing and financing, charging infrastructure and energy solutions, fleet management services, and end of vehicle life management.

The new platform has received anchor investment from the Green Climate Fund which has committed to invest up to $US 200 million. Overall, Vertelo plans to invest $US 1.5 billion over 10 years with the aim to achieve a potential greenhouse gas emissions reduction of ~9.5 MtCO2e2.

The company lends support to India’s ambitious vehicle electrification target of achieving 40% electric buses and 70% electric commercial cars by 20303 and aligns well with the Indian Government’s vision for mobility in India revolving around the 7 Cs - Common, Connected, Convenient, Congestion-free, Charged, Clean, and Cutting-edge.

As a first step on this journey, Vertelo has signed a long-term lease agreement with Chalo Mobility Pvt Ltd, a leading Indian transport technology company, to supply 44 electric buses manufactured by JBM, a leading electric bus manufacturer in India, to operate in Mumbai. Also, to meet the growing demand of customers, Vertelo has signed agreements with multiple OEMs including JBM and Eka Mobility to buy up to 2,000 electric from each partner over the next three to five years and with Tata Motors to buy up to 2,000 electric cars over the next three years.

Abhishek Poddar, India Country Head, Macquarie Group, said:

“The transition to electric vehicles will bring significant benefits to India – increasing its energy independence and mitigating the impacts of climate change. Vertelo aims to play a key role in accelerating this transition by making it easy for its customers to realise the benefits of going electric immediately.”

Henry Gonzalez, Green Climate Fund Deputy Executive Director said:

“The platform launched today is a big moment for all involved. It has been designed to speed up the adoption of electric vehicles - buses and commercial fleets - by providing affordable leasing and financing solutions. This will help bring costs down, so electric vehicles can be truly competitive and people can breathe cleaner, safer air across the country. This investment is the Green Climate Fund‘s first private-sector transport programme in the e-mobility sector, and we are excited to have provided $US 200 million equity capital to support India’s e-mobility transition.”

The new business will be led by Sandeep Gambhir who previously led the automotive leasing, mobility, and nonbank financial businesses for ORIX India for 11 years.

Sandeep Gambhir, Chief Executive Officer, Vertelo said:

“Vertelo aims to become a larger ecosystem player in the EV mobility landscape through its unique and comprehensive offering that covers the entire lifecycle of the underlying assets including Uupfront capital solution, charging infrastructure, maintenance and energy management, which helps it to partner with large OEMs, fleet operators, and other corporates, and accelerate fleet electrification in India.”

Mohit Dubey, Co-Founder and CEO, Chalo, said:

“We are happy to partner with Vertelo and JBM to add these 44 Chalo buses in Mumbai, taking our fleet to 100 electric luxury AC buses. This is a significant step for Mumbai where Chalo and BEST have partnered to run a luxury bus service for daily commute. Congratulations to the Vertelo team on their launch. We look forward to a long-term sustainable partnership with them.”

Nishant Arya, Vice Chairman, JBM Group said:

“JBM is excited to announce its global strategic partnership with Vertelo to deploy up to 2,000 electric buses over next three to five years, beginning with a sizeable first deployment of 44 electric buses, marking a significant milestone in sustainable mobility. Together, we’re shaping the future of zero emission electric public transportation with a commitment to innovation and excellence.”

Vertelo is backed by the Green Climate Fund in partnership with Macquarie Asset Management, part of Macquarie Group. Macquarie Group is one of Australia’s ten largest companies and has been active in India for over 19 years – it has invested over $US 2.5 billion in equity capital into Indian infrastructure.

Macquarie Group has been supporting driving practical climate solutions for almost 20 years, with its first investments in renewables dating back to 2005. Macquarie is working to help commercial fleet operators finance the deployment of clean vehicles and charging infrastructure in the US, the Netherlands, Belgium, and the UK4.

2. See notes below for methodology.

4. Our role in supporting climate solutions, Macquarie Group, September 2023

Methodology for emissions reduction calculation

Emission reductions are based on the business plan at the time of the funding proposal, May 2022. As the EV platform entails funding of both electric vehicles (EVs) and EV charging infrastructure, a combination of two existing peer-reviewed methodologies was used to assess the level of GHG emissions reduced by the platform over the implementation period of 10 years. Both the methodologies are based on the core principles of Tier 1 and Tier 2 methods specified under 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, and 2019 IPCC Guidelines Refinement.

Methodology 1, AMS-III.C.: Emission reductions by electric and hybrid vehicles — Version 15.0 is applicable to Electric vehicles (E-buses, electric light commercial vehicles (like electric trucks), two/three and four wheelers). There is a limitation where this methodology can be used only for small scale projects (projects which reduce GHG emissions less than or equal to 60 ktCO2 equivalent annually), but given no other viable option, this methodology was used.

Methodology 2, VM0038 - Methodology for Electric Vehicle Charging Systems, version 1.0 is applicable to EV charging systems, including their associated infrastructure.

The baseline scenario for computation is defined as the GHG emissions reduced due to the replacement of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles across Indian urban and semi-urban setup by funding comparable electric transportation vehicles (i.e. e-buses, e-cars, e-three wheelers and e-two wheelers.) and funding electric charging infrastructure (ECI) to support the operation of comparable electric vehicle fleets.

Darban Rawat