Ather Energy is speeding up its production plans, as it looks to mass produce the Ather 450 electric scooter and other ancilliary products. Towards the same, the company today announced signing of an MoU with state government of Tamil Nadu, an industrial state towards the south of India.
While details on the MoU are scarce, Ather Energy said that it that the 400,000 sq. ft. facility will make Li-ion batteries and electric vehicles. The company also mentioned that the factory will be at least 10 times the facility that it currently operates.
The company currently produces the Ather 450 – an electric scooter that aims to replace the conventional Indian two wheelers. The scooter can reach maximum speeds of upto 80kmph, reaches 0-40 kmph in 3.9 seconds and lasts 55-75 kms on a full charge, depending on your usage. Ather’s proprietary BLDC motor offers an optimum 20.5 Nm of instant torque and a peak power output of 5.4 kW for cruising at top speed. While the scooter is clearly not going to ‘replace’ your conventional petrol two-wheeler, it does however presents a strong case for being your go-to scooter for nearby tasks.
To sweeten the deal, the company introduced brand new ‘subscription plans’ last year, for those looking to test out the electric scooter. The new plans were introduced to offer greater flexibility to users, and interestingly provide them with free charging across the company’s ‘AtherGrid’ charging infrastructure. That free charging element ends December 31st this year.
Ather Energy was co-founded in 2013 by Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain and is one the few automotive startups in India. The company has designed India’s first truly intelligent electric scooters – Ather 450 and Ather 340. Ather has been backed by the founders of Flipkart, as well as Tiger Global and Hero Motocorp, among others.
Electric two-wheelers have become quite a rage in the world’s largest two wheeler producing as well as consuming market. Off late, while the electric vehicle manufacturing sector has seen subdued interest, the leasing space has been flushed with capital.
Bounce, an electric/gasoline two wheeler rental company recently announced a $150M fundraise. Similarly, yulu, an all-electric two wheeler rental company announced fundraise from world’s third largest two wheeler maker, Bajaj Auto. The latter’s fundraise also included manufacturing of electric two wheelers through Bajaj’s massive production infrastructure across the world.
