DRIVN and JBM EV Signs MoU to Deploy 500 Electric Buses Across India

DRIVN and JBM Electric Vehicles have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding. To introduce 500 electric buses in India within the year starting from Gurugram on 13 July 2026. This collaboration joins forces in a model involving bus manufacture, lease, financing, and charging of electric buses.

What is Involved in the Agreement?

In the initial stage, the agreement involves intercity coaches of high-end quality. In the first phase, DRIVN will purchase the buses from JBM Electric Vehicles and offer fleet operators lease and finance, alongside other aspects including maintenance and charging facilities.

It is stated that this model has been developed to ease the transition to electric commercial vehicles by cutting down the initial investment cost burden that is usually the main hurdle in this respect.

Alpna Jain, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer, DRIVN, said, "Commercial fleet electrification requires an ecosystem that makes the transition both operationally seamless and financially viable. Our partnership with JBM Electric Vehicles combines technology leadership, EV ecosystem solutions and manufacturing excellence with an integrated leasing model to help fleet operators adopt electric buses with greater ease and confidence. By bringing together financing, fleet support and charging solutions, we are building a scalable pathway for accelerating commercial EV adoption across India."

Key takeaways

• 500 electric buses would be rolled out in the next year.
• The initial rollouts will center on luxury intercity coaches.
• This includes finance, maintenance, and charging services.

Both firms may later venture into schools, employee transportation, and airport transfer services.

Significance of the Collaboration

The news comes amid a period when the Indian electric bus market is picking pace. According to the report, industry estimates indicate the market can balloon from USD 753.3 million in 2024 to USD 2.43 billion in 2030, fueled by the increasing demand for emission-free transportation.

Also, it points out that electric buses comprised 4.5% of bus sales in FY26 compared to 3.5% in FY25.

Nishant Arya, Chairman, JBM Electric Vehicles, said, “India witnessed a growth of 40% in e-bus registrations in H1 CY2026 with 2,944 bus registrations across various states under the PM E-Bus Sewa and PM E-Drive schemes. This partnership with Drivn comes in at an opportune time aptly complimenting the growing momentum in India’s e-bus deployment. At JBMEV, we believe that the transition to clean mobility must be both scalable and financially viable. By integrating our advanced electric bus technology with Drivn’s innovative leasing and financing platform, this partnership is designed to unlock scalable adoption of e-mobility by addressing capital barriers and enabling a more sustainable, asset-light transition for fleet operators, corporates amongst others. This collaboration reinforces our commitment to building a future-ready, zero-emission mobility ecosystem while advancing India’s decarbonisation agenda.”

ELCTRIK Speaks

This collaboration seems like an effective way to expand electric buses in India. Since the partners are blending manufacturing, leasing and financing in their plan. They will be able to solve one of the most important problems preventing the implementation of electric vehicles: The cost problem. The attention to intercity coaches is logical as well as they represent a segment where electrification will definitely bring some changes. In case of on time implementation, this project may serve as an example for other categories of fleets as well.