Electric ride-hailing company BluSmart is looking to step out of its core business and transform into a fleet partner for arch-rival Uber, almost six years after having ventured into the mobility space in a similar role, as per a report in the Economic Times.
Shareholders of BluSmart have voted to sell its fleet to Uber over the next few weeks, starting with a gradual handover of 700-800 cars, according to a source. After this is done, BluSmart will shut down its own ride-hailing services. The time frame for the transition is being worked out, the source further added.
This significant change follows BluSmart having experienced major financial difficulties, with cash burn every month over Rs 20 crore. BluSmart's founders, Anmol Singh Jaggi and Puneet Singh Jaggi, who together hold more than 25% of BluSmart, had earlier made major capital investments along with external fund raising efforts. BluSmart has a completely electric fleet, and Uber had introduced its own electric car service, Uber Green, in 2023, with plans to put on the road 25,000 EVs with fleet partners like Everest Fleet, Lithium Urban Technologies, and Mo.
BluSmart's all-electric fleet also features cars leased from Gensol, which owns a major share in BluSmart's business.
During the financial restructuring, BluSmart has witnessed a string of high-level resignations. Sources have confirmed that CEO Anirudh Arun, CFO Tushar Garg, CTO Rishabh Sood, and Vice President of Experience Priya Chakravarthy have quit their jobs. Nandan Sharma, who was earlier Vice President of Business and Operations, will replace him as CEO. There could be more exits in the near future.
The restructuring comes at a time when Gensol Engineering, BluSmart's parent company, has ended its existing lease deals. Gensol will be selling 2,997 electric vehicles to Chennai-based Refex Green Mobility, which will then lease them back to BluSmart. The sale, representing approximately 34% of BluSmart's 8,700-vehicle fleet, is contingent on a Rs 315 crore loan that Refex will be taking. Nevertheless, the deal awaits approval from the government.
There have even been reports of Uber looking at acquiring BluSmart, with speculation that Uber is considering BluSmart's electric vehicle assets in order to enhance its electric cab business in India. The negotiations are said to have surfaced after BluSmart cofounder Anmol Singh Jaggi experienced liquidity challenges. Jaggi, however, has flatly denied these takeover reports as "purely speculative and unfounded" and confirmed BluSmart's intentions to develop its sustainable mobility platform.
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