Battery-swapping company Indofast Energy and EV-as-a-service platform Hala Mobility have announced plans to deploy a cumulative 40,000 electric vehicles by March 2027, expanding their presence in India’s commercial and last-mile delivery market.
The companies said their partnership had already scaled to 15,000 operational vehicles in less than a year. Most of these vehicles are currently running in Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Delhi NCR and Mumbai.
Under the next phase of the collaboration, additional vehicles will be deployed in these existing markets as well as Pune, Chennai and Jaipur. The partners have set a further target of reaching one lakh vehicles by March 2028.
The arrangement combines Hala Mobility’s fleet operations with Indofast Energy’s battery-swapping network. It is aimed primarily at delivery riders, logistics companies and other commercial operators that require vehicles to remain on the road for long periods.
According to the companies, riders in this segment typically travel between 80 and 100 kilometres a day. A battery swap can be completed in around two minutes, allowing operators to avoid the longer downtime associated with conventional charging.
The companies also claimed that electric vehicles operating through the swapping model could offer running costs up to 40% lower than comparable petrol-powered vehicles. Actual savings, however, may vary depending on vehicle utilisation, energy tariffs, fleet contracts and operating conditions.
For last-mile fleets, where a parked vehicle is usually an unproductive vehicle, even a few minutes saved can matter. Battery swapping is therefore being positioned not merely as a charging alternative, but as an operational tool for improving vehicle availability and rider earnings.
Rajat Malhan, Chief Business Officer, Indofast Energy, said the deployment achieved so far demonstrated the commercial viability of the model.
“Our partnership with Hala Mobility demonstrates what happens when reliable energy infrastructure meets ambitious fleet deployment – rapid, scalable EV adoption that works for riders, operators, and the environment. Reaching 15,000 vehicles in under a year validates that battery swapping is the default choice for fleet operators who prioritise uptime and economics. As we scale toward 40,000 vehicles by March 2027 and 1 lakh by 2028, we are building the kind of integrated ecosystem that will define India’s commercial EV transition; making swappable battery EVs the most practical and profitable choice for last-mile logistics,” Malhan said.
Srikanth Reddy, Founder, Hala Mobility, said the partnership was intended to make electric mobility more accessible to India’s delivery workforce.
“At Hala Mobility, we are committed to democratizing electric mobility for India’s delivery workforce. Partnering with Indofast Energy allows us to integrate our fleet with robust battery swapping infrastructure, ensuring our riders experience zero downtime and maximum daily earnings. Our rapid scale-up to 15,000 vehicles proves that the model is effective towards creating a highly efficient, sustainable, and inclusive EV ecosystem across India,” Reddy said.
Indofast Energy said it currently operates more than 1,900 battery-swapping stations across 24 cities. Its network supports over 120,000 vehicles and has enabled more than two billion kilometres of electric mobility, according to figures shared by the company.
The company also estimates that vehicles using its network have helped avoid more than 97,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. These figures were provided by Indofast Energy and were not independently verified.
India’s last-mile delivery sector has emerged as an important testing ground for electric mobility because its vehicles generally follow predictable routes, cover high daily distances and return regularly to dense urban areas. These operating patterns can make electric two- and three-wheelers particularly suitable for fleet electrification.
However, the ability of battery swapping to become a widely adopted energy model will depend on network density, battery compatibility, vehicle availability, financing and the long-term economics offered to riders and fleet operators.
The Indofast-Hala expansion suggests that commercial EV adoption is increasingly being driven by practical considerations such as uptime and daily operating costs, rather than environmental messaging alone. For India’s delivery economy, the electric transition may ultimately be decided less by grand promises and more by whether the next parcel reaches the customer on time.
