Dharmik Bapodara, co-founder of Yotuh Energy alongside Vivek and Shaivee, is transforming cold chain logistics with sustainable, made-in-India cooling solutions designed for global impact. From building race cars at IIT Delhi’s Formula Student team to electrifying India’s cold chain, he draws on motorsport-honed skills in team-building and problem-solving. Their Independent Battery powered refrigeration system slashes refrigeration fuel costs by up to 80% versus diesel units, targeting intra-city quick commerce with the modular ERIL platform.
From Racing Teams to Refrigeration Innovation
Dharmik’s journey pivoted from building race cars to tackling India’s underdeveloped cold chain, where low penetration cold chain logistics hampers perishables. “Diesel-driven ACs consumes higher amount of fuel as they are attached with the main vehicle engines by tying refrigeration to vehicle engines,” he explained. Their independent battery architecture, with adaptive cooling controls, optimizes efficiency and reduces the running cost drastically via leveraging live operational data driven systems for unmatched efficiency and maintenance savings.
The name Yotuh Energy—rooted in a Sanskrit term for “cleaning”—reflects electrification’s purifying impact, despite frequent “youth” mix-ups suiting their young team.
Hardware Hurdles and Incubator Boost
Typically, the hardware development cycles are longer and capital intensive, but, and alumni support fueled iterations. Convincing skeptical transporters involved relentless testing and customer feedback, prioritizing right hires and a discipline-first culture from racing days.
Initial funding blended student savings, family backing, and grants—founders skipped salaries for two years to pour into prototypes. Their product development was supported by the Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Science and Technology, MEITY, Acumen, IIT Madras along side the support from IIM Udaipur Incubation, Punjab Agri Business Incubator, FiiRe Goa and IIM Vishakapatnam Incubation.
Pilots, Demos, and Trust-Building Wins
Skepticism over savings claims dissolved via demo vehicles and 1.5-year pilots, securing 20 pre-launch interested buyers who became ambassadors via word-of-mouth. Quick service shines: same-day fixes or spare vehicles if downtime hits 24 hours, ensuring business continuity and loyalty.
With reliable and scalable hardware, backed by strong partnership and service network is helping them scale across major metro cities of India.
Intra-City Focus to Nationwide Vision
ERIL Platform fits a diverse Range of vehicles (ICE and EVs) for quick commerce’s boom, delivering temperature consistency without vehicle dependency. Long-term, Yotuh Energy eyes inter-city trucks, containers, and beyond—commercial, industrial cooling—to make Cold chain affordable for low-value goods, sustainability-driven.
Dharmik envisions broader access, leveraging India’s supply chain gaps.
Interview by : Sejal Thakur
