CHENNAI: The city’s wait for a larger electric bus fleet may stretch for a few more months, with the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) repeatedly postponing the opening of three tenders to procure and operate 1,520 e-buses due to concerns over lack of multiple bidders.
The three tenders are for 1,000 12-metre AC e-buses, 300 7-metre AC e-buses and 220 AC e-buses, including 150 five-metre micro buses and 70 seven-metre buses. Floated under the Gross Cost Contract (GCC) model, they have been postponed several times now. The MTC’s tender records show the revised bid-opening dates for the three tenders are October 14, October 16 and October 7, respectively. The bids were first floated in February and March 2026.
According to sources, the latest postponement was because the corporation could not attract multiple bidders. The MTC is now looking beyond OHM Global Mobility and Switch Mobility to bring in more manufacturers and operators and avoid further delays in the procurement process. At present, 625 e-buses are operating in the city.
An official said the 220-bus tender had earlier drawn only one bidder, forcing the corporation to postpone the process. The 220-bus fleet is proposed to strengthen first and last-mile connectivity to around 12 Chennai Metro stations. The Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA) has proposed 220 micro buses as feeder services for the metro network.
The procurement has been facing a series of delays with the MTC deferring the opening of bids for 1,520 electric buses after vendors raised several queries during pre-bid meetings.
Meanwhile, V Dhayanantham, general secretary of the MTC Employees Union, questioned the economics of operating e-buses under the GCC model. He alleged the MTC spends around Rs 80 per km, while transport corporations in other states incur Rs 40 to Rs 70 per km.
He demanded that the present TVK government order an investigation into the tenders floated during the previous DMK regime and cancel the existing tenders if irregularities are found. He also urged the government to examine whether the MTC could procure and operate the buses directly instead of relying on private operators under the GCC model.
The MTC already operates e-buses under the GCC model, with payments to private operators previously reported at around Rs 77 per km for non-AC buses and Rs 81 per km for AC buses.
