New Delhi | 07 January 2026
In a significant step towards advancing zero-emission freight and sustainable mobility in India, National Highways for Electric Vehicles (NHEV), an Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) flagship pilot program and Smart Freight Centre (SFC), have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on freight decarbonisation, emissions modelling, and future-ready electric highway systems.
Strengthening India’s Freight Decarbonisation Ecosystem
The collaboration aims to jointly explore and prototype frameworks for freight activity and emissions modelling, zero-emission truck (ZET) financing instruments, and sustainable transport systems aligned with India’s energy transition and climate commitments.
Under the MoU, both organisations will work towards identifying and qualifying freight use cases across electric highway, including route optimisation, total cost of ownership (TCO) analysis, vehicle selection, and charging strategies. A key focus area will be the development of corridor-level emissions calculators, leveraging real-world toll and freight data to quantify CO₂ and pollutant loads.
Advancing ZET Financing and Policy-Driven Research
Recognising the importance of financial innovation in scaling zero-emission freight, the partnership will engage with financial institutions, banks, NBFCs, and OEMs to structure scalable, risk-sharing financing mechanisms for electric and clean freight solutions.
The MoU also provides for joint research and dissemination, including collaborative studies, policy briefs, technical reports, and stakeholder consultations. Workshops, roundtables, and training programmes for policymakers, academia, and industry will be organised to support evidence-based decision-making and capacity building.
“Freight decarbonisation is the next critical frontier in India’s energy transition. Through this collaboration with Smart Freight Centre, NHEV is strengthening the evidence-based foundations required to scale zero-emission freight on India’s electric highways—combining global emissions expertise with on-ground pilots, corridor-level data, and future-ready charging infrastructure.”
— Abhijeet Sinha, Program Director, NHEV | National Program Director – Ease of Doing Business
“India’s electric highway initiative represents a transformative opportunity to decarbonise freight at scale. Through this collaboration with NHEV, Smart Freight Centre looks forward to applying global emissions accounting frameworks and freight data expertise to support corridor-level action, transparent measurement, and accelerated adoption of zero-emission freight solutions.”
— Dr. Christoph Wolff, CEO, Smart Freight Centre
