With partnerships across various sectors, Greenline CEO Anand Mimani explains how the company wants to utilise the focus on ESG for expansion
Essar Group’s GreenLine Mobility Solutions has been forging partnerships with major industry players. In recent weeks, it has signed agreements with Flipkart and Exide Industries to deploy LNG trucks to reduce emissions in the firms’ supply chains.
In an exclusive interview with Outlook Business, GreenLine CEO Anand Mimani says that the focus on scope 3 emissions is bound to drive growth for the firm launched in 2021. He talks about the emerging opportunities in different sectors, the state of supply chain greening and the impact of government support.
Q: Since 2021, how has the firm evolved its strategy to green supply chains in India?
A: What we have been able to contribute to the country’s green ecosystem is a little over 500 vehicles that we’ve been able to deploy, saving approximately seven and a half thousand tons of carbon dioxide so far.
A small contribution we could make to the country, in trying to help and ensure better air quality in places like NCR and others, is by deploying green vehicles. This is what we are aiming for and targeting, as heavy-duty automobiles are one of the most polluting segments in the entire automotive chain. Approximately 60 to 70% of CO2 emissions from the automobile sector come from heavy-duty commercial vehicles. That is the target area we are focusing on and working towards
Q: Are you seeing more traction in India Inc to adopt green supply chain solutions?
A: The green mission is present in most of the conscious corporates of the country. And we are continuously looking forward to partnering with them. They also invite us into this partnership because everybody wants a greener India.
And so this is the way forward. Everyone believes that whatever each corporate could participate in to reduce the scope 3 emission level basis would be possible is something they are also wanting to do and work on. So, to create a better ecosystem in the country, every conscious corporate is looking at some option or the other, whether it is LNG or a way forward as EV vehicles, to be deployed and reduce the scope 3 emission levels of the country.
Q: Do you feel there are still hiccups in the LNG ecosystem which is holding more growth back?
A: As far as LNG is concerned, you see, we started about one and a half to two years ago with the whole deployment of the vehicles. We are almost completing two years, as I speak with you, of the deployment of LNG vehicles. In these last two years of the journey, approximately 25 pumps have been opened up between the western and southern corridors of the country.
I would say it has been very, very encouraging to see most of the oil and gas companies also moving ahead and setting up pumps across India, supporting the vision and mission of a gas-based economy, as mentioned by the PMO a few years ago. The whole ecosystem is getting developed, and everyone is working on that. So, it’s a good atmosphere.
Q: There are several alternative solutions available to green supply chains, how is your strategy going to evolve?
A: India is a growing country as we all know. And today, about 4 million vehicles in the medium to heavy-duty space are already there in the country. And if you read the last Niti Aayog report, it is said that at the rate of 7 to 8% CAGR growth, in the next 10 years, the 4 million vehicle market would increase to about an 8 million vehicle market.
And if this 8 million has to grow at that ratio as it is, the automotive industry is looking at a huge investment. And if the support from the government and all the banking and financial institutions is there in the appropriate manner, I mean, the calculations are pretty straightforward. What the country demands to create this green ecosystem is clear. Now, how much percentage of that would move to green trucks like LNG, EV, and, going forward, hydrogen? Only time can tell.
But we are all putting in our best efforts. As and when we close agreements with every customer, based on the availability of the ecosystem, we are continuously deploying the vehicles.
Q: Where do you see the most number of opportunities in the market?
A: We started off with metal mining and commodities like cement and others. But in today’s date, we are also focusing and have got a very good bulk demand from the e-commerce sector, from FMCGs, and from other sectors like, you can say, wood, automotive, and auto components. So all other sectors, chemicals, they are all now slowly asking us to deploy for them as well.
And in today’s date, if you ask me, the LNG vehicles we have been able to successfully deploy across all these six or seven sectors, and there is a requirement and a continuous discussion happening with all of them.
Q: With the budget around the corner, are you expecting some incentives for corporates to go big on controlling logistics emissions?
A: Being in the logistics space and a young business company, our mantra has always been to be an ESG logistics company. And when we talk about ESG, while we are saving the environment, sustainability is very important for every business. Any government incentive is only going to be for a short period. So we have not made our business plan based on government incentives. Government incentives are add-ons that help boost the deployment of such vehicles and help ensure that we can scale up more quickly.
All right, so definitely any push from the government or incentive coming towards this stream would always be helpful in the quicker deployment and boosting of the deployment and penetration of this market. However, even if it is not there, a business model surely can be created where the business can survive, be sustainable, and work on the green initiatives that can be taken.
Definitely, as you see, if the EV vehicles are deployed, the oil bills would be reduced. And if the government supports those lines by giving something to the industries, definitely quicker deployment and faster deployment pace would all get increased. All that is there, but incentives are just to boost it up, not for, you know, the business sustainability, which has to be thought of differently.
Source: outlookbusiness.com
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