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Ola Electric is an electric two-wheeler manufacturer and sustainable mobility solutions provider. The company was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Bengaluru. The company will soon be launching its first product in the Indian market, which will be an electric scooter. Ola Electric is different from other mobility companies in India, as it is building massive production capacities right from the beginning. Usually, companies start small and later increase production based on demand. However, Ola Electric has chosen to start on a large scale right from its inception.
While it seems like a risky proposition, the mega production plans could be beneficial in certain ways. For example, the company may benefit from economies of scale. This will allow the company to price its products at a competitive price point in comparison to rival offerings. Ola Electric’s mega factory is coming up in Tamil Nadu involving an investment of Rs 2,400 crore. When complete, the factory will have capacity to manufacture 10 million units per year.
Ola Electric production facility will be the largest of its kind in the world. Spread across an area of 500 acres, the facility will have integrated manufacturing, battery production and supplier parks. The idea is to simplify logistics and increase localization to more than 90%. The plant will rely heavily on artificial intelligence (AI) and will have more than 3000 AI-based robots. This will ensure high level of quality and precision in manufactured products.
History
Back in 2017, the founder noticed the immense possibilities that exist in electric two-wheeler space. The challenges were also apparent, for example, the high cost of electric two-wheelers and range anxiety. Lack of adequate charging infrastructure was another major factor that prevented users from switching to electric vehicle.
Ola electric scooter could potentially solve most of these problems. Along with multi-million production capacity, the company is also building a large network of hypercharger stations across the country. Ola Hypercharger Network is being developed across 400 cities. In total, it will have more than 100 thousand charging points to begin with. Users can load 75 km in just 18 minutes. This hypercharger network will be crucial in eliminating range anxiety.
Funding
Ola Electric is a well-funded organization with multi-million dollar investments. It is among the companies that have achieved the ‘Unicorn’ tag in the fastest possible time. Some of Ola Electric’s key investors include SoftBank Group, Tiger Global Management, Matrix Partners India, RNT Associates, Hyundai, Kia and Bank of Baroda.
Acquisitions
Ola Electric has not made any acquisitions till date.
Competitors
Ola Electric competes with other electric two-wheeler manufacturers such as Ather, Hero Electric, Ampere, Bajaj, Okinawa, and TVS.
About the Founder
Ola Electric is led by Bhavish Aggarwal, who also heads Ola Cabs. Bhavish currently serves as the CEO of Ola Electric. He is computer science graduate from IIT, Bombay. Prior to launching Ola Cabs, he had worked at Microsoft.
