Three Wheels United is one among the 50 climate innovation startups, selected from more than 600 applicants across 60+ countries
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| Image - .Facebook.com/Threewheelsunited |
Bangalore, December 2, 2020: Three Wheels United, a Bengaluru based tech-enabled financier of light electric vehicles, has been selected for Third Derivative's inaugural cohort comprising 50 climate innovation startups. Third Derivative (D3), a joint venture of Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) and New Energy Nexus, is a global, vertically integrated engine for climate innovation. They find, fund, hone, and scale the most-promising technologies to achieve larger, faster reductions in global carbon emissions.
The inaugural cohort known as 'Cohort 417' named for this year's peak atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration of 417.1 ppm recorded in May, comprises startups spanning across sectors such as electricity, transportation, buildings, industry, energy access, food and agriculture, and financial and business model innovation. Three Wheels is one among the only three startups shortlisted from India.
Three Wheels United(TWU) was founded with an aim to reduce air pollution and generate more income for auto rickshaw drivers by helping them switch to electric auto rickshaws. Founded by Cedrick Tandong, Kevin Wervenbos, and Apurv Mehra in 2017, Three Wheels United provides loans for drivers to make a switch from conventional rickshaws to electric rickshaws. Out of the 12 Million auto- rickshaw drivers in India, 50% of the drivers rent their vehicle. The financing that is currently available for auto rickshaws drivers has extremely high down payment and interest rates, making these loans not feasible for many drivers. Though electric 3-wheelers are more attractive for a driver due to a lower total cost of ownership and higher profitability (TWU, ENEA, 2019), due to the lack of financing options that work for them, auto drivers are unable to make the shift to electric vehicles. Three Wheels United was founded with an aim to improve income for drivers by helping them shift from conventional auto rickshaws to EVs and positively impact the environment.
Commenting on the selection, Cedrick Tandong, CEO and Co-Founder, Three Wheels United said "We are excited to be a part of one of the largest climate innovation cohorts. At Three Wheels United, our overarching goal is to reduce the climate impact of the transportation sector by helping auto rickshaw drivers seamlessly switch to cleaner mobility. This collaboration with Third Derivative will surely help us accelerate our efforts towards promoting sustainable last mile connectivity"
Till date, Three Wheels United has worked with over 30,000 drivers offering them various products and services, financed 3000+ auto rickshaws resulting in reduction of 22,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions, and the generation of an extra $20M in income for the drivers.
For more details visit:
Third Derivative - Accelerating the rate of climate innovation together.
About Three Wheels United (TWU)
Three Wheels United is a Bangalore based fintech startup that offers holistic financing solutions for auto drivers to own a light electric vehicle, such as an electric auto rickshaw. It was started with an aim to reduce pollution while generating more income for light vehicle operators by helping them switch to electric vehicles.
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