Key Highlights:
- Ola Electric Mobility Pvt. unveiled an e-scooter costing 99,999 rupee in India
- The goal is to start production with 1 million scooters in the next several months
- Ola is setting up a facility in India for 330 million dollars to produce 10 million automobiles a year
Electric Two-wheelers by 2025
With the price of petrol inching closer to Rs 100 per litre, the demand for battery scooters has risen as people want to save on fuel costs. As a consequence, e-scooter sales have significantly grown throughout India. Prospective two-wheeler customers are also interested in buying e-scooters and in researching local dealerships. However, Ola Electric Mobility Pvt. presented an e-scooter in India ranging 99.999 rupees ($1,348) in order to break down the barrier in terms of affordability for electric two-wheelers.
The SoftBank Group Corp.- and Tiger Global Management-backed electric vehicle unicorn announced the price of the Ola S1 during a ceremonial launch on 15 August that coincides with India’s Independence Day. “The final price will fluctuate depending on the state governments’ subsidies,” the company stated. In October, the company is optimistic that deliveries will start in 1,000 locations. And in the coming months, there will be exports to nations such as Asia, Latin America, and Europe.
“By 2025, all two-wheelers sold in India should be electric, that is my goal,” stated Bhavish Aggarwal, chairman and group chief executive officer of Ola Group, which also includes the Ola ride-hailing service. “The objective is to start manufacturing in the next few months of 1 million scooters, which will be expanded as demand increases,” he said.
Ola’s Scooter Emerges with a Home-charging Kit
Aggarwal’s global plans for electric vehicles depend on the price of the bike. Affordability could assist in accomplishing the domestic scale, where petroleum-fueled competing scooters cost around $1,000. Low cost per kilometer and cheap service could help get conventional two-wheeler manufacturers moving forward.
When the scooter opened for pre-reservation a few weeks ago, more than 100,000 orders were received by the company within 24 hours. It charged a booking price of 499 rupees and arranged nine banks for the purchase of 2,999 rupees every month.
Ola’s scooter comes with a home charging kit, it will lead to the development of the largest loading station network in the country, spread over 100 cities. The scooter was fully designed in Bangalore with technology from keyless access to small car parks to reverse mode. Hero MotoCorp’s supported Ather Energy Pvt. is among its competitors, whose electric scooters have been on the market for a few years.
Establishing a $330 Million Plant
In India, Ola is establishing a $330 million plant that will generate 10 million vehicles a year, or 15% of the global electric scooters, by the end of 2022. The 2 million square meter factory is capable of deploying one scooter every two seconds. For now, only one of its 10 lines is operational.
Aggarwal intends to design and construct a variety of vehicles, including electric vehicles. All are built from 90% of local components to help promote the initiative of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and sustainable mobility as well.
Ola Electric is Aggarwal’s second turn as an entrepreneur. He pioneered the country a decade ago and acquired Uber Technologies Inc. while growing over 200 Indian cities before moving to areas such as the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. The ride-hailing company is anticipated to make its debut in 2021 in public markets.
Also Read : Australia is all set to get its first electric car sharing services
