BEST’s fleet to increase later this year; as process to procure 1,500 e-buses begins

Mumbai is set to receive 1,500 electric buses under a new CESL tender, aiming to enhance public transport and support the PM E-Drive Scheme.

MUMBAI: In a move that could bring relief to Mumbai’s bus commuters, the city is expected to receive 1,500 electric buses under a new tender floated by Convergence Energy Services Limited (CESL), an arm of state-run Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL).

BEST’s fleet to increase later this year; as process to procure 1,500 e-buses begins

CESL has invited bids to deploy a total of 6,230 electric buses across five cities, Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad, with Mumbai set to receive the largest share after Delhi.

According to the tender, the 1,500 buses for Mumbai will be procured through a wet lease model, under which the selected operator will be responsible for procurement, supply, operation, maintenance and creation of allied electric and civil infrastructure. In return, the operator will be paid on a per-kilometre basis, with costs including buses, drivers, maintenance and charging-related requirements.

The move is part of the Union government’s PM E-Drive Scheme, which aims to accelerate adoption of electric vehicles, particularly electric buses, through incentives and subsidies.

CESL’s latest tender follows an earlier national push under the same scheme. During the second half of 2025, CESL had floated a bid for 10,900 electric buses for Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Surat. When those bids were opened in December, officials found the quotations to be significantly lower than estimates, and 14 of the 16 participating companies met the technical criteria.

CESL appears to be attempting a similar strategy again, leveraging competition and economies of scale to bring down costs of e-buses for public transport systems.

The tender document includes provisions to ensure long-term reliability, including availability of spare parts for the full life of the buses. “The implementing partner shall guarantee that before going out of production of spare parts of the equipment covered under the contract, he shall give CESL at least 2 years advance notice that the latter may order his bulk requirement of spares, if it so desires,” the bid document states.

The bid submission deadline has been set for March 10. Officials indicated that commuters may start seeing the new buses only in the second half of the year, unless manufacturers already have ready stock and can expedite deliveries.

Currently, the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking has 2,744 buses, of which 2,495 are operated on wet lease while only 249 are owned by BEST. Records show that BEST operated around 4,800 buses 15 to 17 years ago, but its fleet strength has nearly halved over time.

BEST officials have projected that Mumbai requires around 7,000 buses to ensure improved frequency and to strengthen last-mile connectivity to the metro network expanded over the past four years. The undertaking earns around ₹2.5 crore to ₹3 crore daily from ticket sales but continues to rely heavily on grants from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

Earlier this month, Hindustan Times reported that around 20 new electric buses meant to be added to BEST’s fleet had been lying idle at the Shivaji Nagar depot for nearly a fortnight, even as commuters faced persistent shortages and long waiting times.