India now has an all-electric heavy-duty truck very first. Nevertheless, it does not come from Germany or Sweden–it actually comes from an Indian startup–Infraprime Logistics Technology (IPLT). And, the truck is in commercial use already. Infraprime Logistics Technologies(IPLT) is a fleet service provider based in Gurugram. In the next 1.5 months, the company plans to launch its first commercial vehicle.
As IPLT people say, the country’s first all-electric truck has been fully designed, developed and built in India. This is also India’s first electric vehicle to feature a two-speed automatic transmission. The truck is essentially a medium-haul logistics vehicle for, for example, mining aggregates for building sites, cement companies, etc. The estimated charge range is 400 km (without payload) and 200 km (with charge). It can accommodate a gradient of 20 degrees higher than diesel trucks.
A major concern with battery vehicles is the increase in battery pack temperatures for which a sophisticated battery cooling system has been fitted with the IPLT electric truck. The system uses liquid refrigerant, which is in contact with each cell, not the battery pack. The system keeps the battery pack temperature at 35 C. In addition, the truck uses a lithium-ion phosphate battery that can not run away thermally due to its nature.
The truck launched on August 1st, the IPLT electric truck is not currently on sale and will only be operating in transport fleets. In the next 1.5 months, the manufacturer plans to roll out five trucks and produce 50-60 trucks per month from its Ghaziabad plant starting in January 2020. IPLT electric truck would cost around Rs 10/km per km, which is relatively low compared to the Rs 30/km of a diesel truck. In addition to this lower EV tax and low maintenance costs, an electric truck can produce a profit margin roughly three times greater than a diesel truck.
Leave a Reply