SmartE, an electric mobility startup that helps commuters ferry across city in a modernised, electronic avatar of India’s iconic three-wheeler autorickshaws, has raised $15 Million (~₹100 crore) from Japanese trading major Mitsui & Co. The capital is a part of the company’s Series B round.
Founded in 2014, SmartE provides electric mobility services and focuses on offering shared last-mile connectivity. It has moved over 35 million commuters till date. With its fleet of nearly 1,000 electric three-wheelers in Delhi-NCR, it moves around 100,000 commuters daily.
The company also owns decent charging infrastructure as well. The startup has its charging infra spread across five large park and charge hubs with a capacity to concurrently charge more than 800 electric three-wheelers. SmartE is also the official last-mile connectivity partner to Delhi Metro, offering its services across multiple metro stations in Delhi, Gurugram, and Faridabad.
“We are committed to transforming the last-mile connectivity paradigm in the country and to creating a global benchmark for electric mobility adoption,” said Goldie Srivastava, co-founder and chief executive of SmartE. He said last-mile connectivity was a $42-billion opportunity in the country and was growing at a compound annual growth rate of 11 per cent. The segment is mainly served by traditional three-wheelers, cycle, and e-rickshaws. Srivastava said 98 per cent of SmartE’s riders pay Rs 10 to cover a distance of 2-3 kms.
The company plans to use its freshly raised capital for increasing fleet size in Delhi-NCR, the geographical area where it currently operates. There are plans to grow into other cities as well.
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