The Montra Electric. India’s end-to-end automotive multi-technology brand has announced its recent move in collaborating with TVS Vehicle Mobility Solutions and works as part of the TVS mobility group. Furthermore, the conglomerate TVS VMS has entered into electric trucking by introducing the first fleet of Montra Electric’s Rhino eM & HCVs directly into live freight operations. This development in itself reflects TVS being able to operate conventional fossil-fuel trucks, which it has seen in seventy years of commercial trucking history.
To mark this landmark, 57 Montra Electric Rhino 5538 EV 4×2 TT electric heavy commercial trucks were at Manesar. As part of the first phase of deployment, TVS VMS will deploy the Rhino eHCVs for commercial freight operations on a primary logistics route in Chhattisgarh. The trucks will operate across a 190 km lead distance, supported by three strategically located, dedicated charging stations to ensure continuous uptime and seamless operational continuity.
This deployment represents another significant milestone in India’s transition towards green mobility by drastically reducing carbon emissions, lowering diesel consumption, and promoting sustainable transportation. The project is engineered to deliver lower operating costs and a reduced Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) for freight customers while directly contributing to India’s Net Zero carbon and clean energy goals.
The flag-off ceremony brought together senior leadership from both organisations, underscoring the strategic weight of this collaboration. Montra Electric was led by Mr. Navneet Sethi, Chief Executive Officer (CEO – eM&HCV Division), and Mr. P.V. Satyanarayana, Chief Business Officer (CBO), alongside the Montra Electric team, while TVS Vehicle Mobility Solutions was led by Mr. Madhu Raghunath, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and Mr. K. Ramesh, Head – EV Business, alongside the TVS VMS leadership team.
Speaking on the partnership, Mr. Jalaj Gupta, Managing Director, Montra Electric, said,”For a partner like TVS VMS, with seven decades of experience, to put our electric trucks into live freight operations is exactly the validation India’s logistics industry needed. This is proof that our technology is ready for commercial scale. It also reflects the depth of what we’ve built at Montra Electric with products engineered to address the specific operational needs of this market. Our team worked with TVS VMS to plan the operations, set up charging around their exact routes, and our telematics platform keeps optimising performance as the fleet runs. That’s the difference between a truck that works on paper and a fleet that works on the road.”
Mr. Navneet Sethi, CEO, Montra Electric (eM&HCV Division), said, ” For years, industries built around heavy, continuous haulage, steel being a prime example, have questioned whether electric HCVs can genuinely stand up to sustained heavy-load freight, and that scepticism has shaped how slowly this sector has moved toward electrification. TVS VMS putting our Rhino trucks into live operations answers that question decisively, for us and for every heavy-load industry watching closely. This is a company with over seven decades of running conventional trucking now choosing to enter electric trucking for the first time, and choosing us to do it is validation that our platform can handle the demands of commercial-scale freight. For Montra Electric, this is a marker of how electric heavy trucking moves from possibility to standard practice in India, and we intend to lead that shift at national scale.”
Mr. Raghunath, CEO of TVS VMS, added,”This strategic partnership marks a decisive step in advancing India’s green logistics infrastructure. TVS Vehicle Mobility Solutions is proud to power this transition through our full-suite, end-to-end lifecycle management platform—integrating vehicle leasing, driver operations, maintenance, insurance, charging ecosystem, and connected telematics to make zero-emission fleet operations effortless and commercially viable.”
Building on this successful collaboration, Monta Electric and TVS VMS aim to deploy more than 300 electric trucks during FY 2026–27, reinforcing their shared vision of transforming commercial transportation through clean and sustainable mobility solutions.
The Montra Rhino 5538 EV 4×2 TT, manufactured at the Montra Electric (IPL Tech Electric Pvt Ltd) plant in Manesar, is a 55-tonne Gross Combination Weight (GCW) electric heavy-duty truck. tractor-trailer, purpose-built for demanding long haul applications. It is powered by a 282 kWh Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) battery paired with a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (PMSM), delivering 280 kW of peak power and 2,000 Nm of torque, with an 18% gradeability and a 6-speed Automated Manual Transmission (AMT) to handle sustained heavy loads.
The fossil-fuel truck usually provides a range of up to 198 km per charge on its one-way loaded, one-way empty duty cycle, showcasing real-world operating conditions. Moreover, it is available in two configurations comprising a standard fixed-battery variant capable of fast charging from 20% to 100% State of Health (SOH) in around 60 minutes and the battery-swap variant that allows the complete battery replacement within 6 minutes and minimizes the downtime on highly used routes similar to this one.
Click Here to get the latest EV news and exclusive updates from EV Mechanica on WhatsApp!
