Bringing Sustainable Mobility to India, One Driver at a Time
India’s petrol and diesel-powered auto-rickshaws are responsible for more than 20 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions per year. Three Wheels United is driving India’s transition to climate-friendly alternatives by empowering drivers, through technology-enabled finance, to own electric auto-rickshaws. The company aims to finance up to 350,000 electric auto-rickshaws by 2030, which would mitigate up to 14 million tonnes of CO2.
Three Wheels United’s solution also improves driver livelihoods. In India, drivers who rent traditional two-stroke auto-rickshaws typically make less than eight dollars per day. A driver who takes Three Wheels United financing typically increases that income to USD 12 per day due to lower fuel and maintenance costs. After repaying the loan, income increases to USD 15 per day, and the driver owns an asset valued new at USD 2,400.
Three Wheels United has unique credit scoring technology, a specialization in one category of lending, and partnerships with large autorickshaw manufacturers. These allow drivers to secure loans at attractive interest rates. Three Wheels United-sourced loans experience a default rate of less than one percent, whereas banks report a much higher default rate for similar loans.
ADB Ventures provided Three Wheels United of SEED Program finance of USD 150,000 in order to mainstream affordable sustainable mobility options in India.
Three Wheels United plans to add a further 500 electric three-wheelers to its loan book over the next 12 months.
