Muddapur, Karnataka: Billion Electric Mobility has partnered with J K Cement Limited to deploy more than 150 heavy-duty electric trucks during the current financial year, as the cement manufacturer seeks to reduce emissions from its commercial freight operations.
The programme began with the flagging off of 20 electric trucks from J K Cement’s Muddapur plant in Karnataka. Each vehicle has a gross vehicle weight of 55 tonnes and will transport cement to stockyards across Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa.
The companies described the initial rollout as one of the region’s largest deployments of electric trucks for cement logistics. It is also expected to test the commercial feasibility of using zero-emission vehicles for mid- and long-haul freight routes, where demanding payloads and charging requirements have traditionally made electrification more challenging.
Under the partnership, Billion Electric will provide an integrated Electric-Mobility-as-a-Service, or eMaaS, ecosystem covering heavy-duty electric vehicles, charging infrastructure, fleet operations and technology-based route management.
The remaining trucks will be introduced in phases during the current financial year, allowing J K Cement to gradually shift a larger portion of its cement transportation operations towards zero-emission mobility.
The deployment will be supported by ChargeZone’s high-speed charging network along important freight corridors in Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa.
Charging infrastructure is being expanded at strategic locations including Nipani, Satara, Pune, Karad, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Goa, Hubli and Davanagere. The network is intended to support reliable mid- and long-distance electric freight movement—because even the most ambitious electric truck still needs somewhere to plug in.
“The decarbonisation of India’s freight sector will be driven by enterprises that are willing to lead from the front. J K Cement’s commitment demonstrates that heavy-duty electric mobility is no longer a future aspiration but a commercially viable reality. Through Billion Electric’s integrated eMaaS platform, supported by ChargeZone’s expanding high-speed charging network, we are enabling businesses to transition to electric freight with confidence while building the infrastructure backbone needed to scale zero-emission logistics across the country,” said Mr. Sanjeev Kulkarni, CEO at Billion Electric Mobility.
Heavy industries such as cement manufacturing depend extensively on road transportation to move raw materials and finished products. Electrifying these operations could help companies reduce transport-related emissions, although large-scale adoption will continue to depend on vehicle performance, charging availability, route planning and overall operating costs.
By combining J K Cement’s freight requirements with Billion Electric’s fleet-management platform and ChargeZone’s charging network, the partnership aims to create a model that can be expanded across other industrial transport corridors.
The project’s progress will offer an important indication of whether heavy-duty electric trucks can move beyond limited pilot programmes and become a practical part of India’s industrial logistics network. For the country’s freight sector, the road to lower emissions may still be long—but it is now being travelled by increasingly heavier electric vehicles.
