Montra Electric PM E-DRIVE Certified Electric Truck Delivered to UltraTech

Montra Electric, the electric commercial vehicle arm of the Murugappa Group, has reached a national first by becoming India’s earliest heavy-duty manufacturer to secure approval under the Government of India’s PM E-DRIVE Scheme. The company delivered the country’s first PM E-DRIVE certified electric heavy truck, the Rhino 5538 EV 6x4 tractor trailer, to UltraTech Cement Limited, the nation’s largest cement and ready-mix concrete producer.
PM E-DRIVE Certification Impact for Montra Electric PM E-DRIVE Certified Electric Truck
Certification under the ₹10,900 crore PM E-DRIVE scheme enables direct customer incentives of up to ₹9.6 lakh per vehicle for the Rhino 5538 EV. This materially improves total cost of ownership for fleets and accelerates adoption of electric heavy-duty trucks. Of the total outlay, ₹500 crore has been earmarked exclusively for e-trucks to drive decarbonisation across logistics, mining, infrastructure, and manufacturing.
The milestone was marked in the presence of Arun Murugappan, Chairman of Montra Electric (TI Clean Mobility), Jalaj Gupta, Managing Director of Montra Electric, and Sathia Raj, Chief Procurement Officer of UltraTech Cement Limited. Union Minister for Heavy Industries H.D. Kumaraswamy acknowledged the achievement as evidence of India’s expanding capabilities in heavy electric mobility.
"The PM E-DRIVE scheme is a testament to the growing prowess of Indian innovation in the heavy-duty electric vehicle segment," said Minister Kumaraswamy. "Under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we are committed to decarbonizing our logistics and making India a global hub for EV manufacturing."
Arun Murugappan underlined the role of policy support in scaling clean freight solutions.
"Decarbonising freight is one of the most critical challenges in India's energy transition," he said. "We are grateful to the Government of India for introducing forward-looking policy frameworks such as the PM E-DRIVE Scheme, which represent a transformative step in accelerating this shift, particularly in heavy commercial vehicles where emissions intensity is high."
Rhino 5538 EV Specifications and Use Cases
The Rhino 5538 EV has been engineered for Indian duty cycles and is offered in 6x4 and 4x2 tractor-trailer configurations. The 4x2 variant supports both fixed battery and battery swapping, enabling six-minute swaps for high-uptime operations. Key specifications include:

• 282 kWh LFP battery

• 380 HP power output

• 2000 Nm torque

• Nearly 198 km range under standard test conditions

These capabilities position the truck for high-utilisation, fixed-route deployments across ports, mining, cement movement, steel plants, and long-haul freight corridors.
Fleet Economics and Emissions Reduction
PM E-DRIVE certification is expected to fast-track electric truck penetration by strengthening long-term fleet economics. Lower operating costs, reduced exposure to fuel price volatility, and alignment with tightening emission norms make electrification compelling. Given that heavy trucks contribute a disproportionate share of freight emissions, this transition is central to India’s net-zero ambitions.
Montra Electric Portfolio and Murugappa Group Scale
Montra Electric operates across four verticals: heavy commercial vehicles, mid and small commercial vehicles, last-mile three-wheelers, and electric tractors. Its lineup includes India’s first 55-ton electric truck trailer Rhino, the 3.5-ton Eviator small commercial vehicle, Super Auto for last-mile passenger mobility, Super Cargo for deliveries, and the country’s first electric tractor, E-27.
Backed by a 125-year legacy, the Murugappa Group reported revenues of ₹90,178 crore and employs 94,041 people across India and international markets, providing scale and stability to Montra Electric’s push into heavy-duty electric mobility.