Taiwan-based Gogoro Inc., a global leader in battery swapping technology, said it will ramp up its rollout in India after getting a clarification from the Indian government on extending EV subsidies to battery swapping two-wheelers.
Currently, subsidies are restricted to fixed battery vehicles only.
During Gogoro’s presentation of its India plans during a global conference call, senior company officials stated that the Indian government’s policy on incentives for battery-swapping vehicles has not yet been finalised.
“The ramp-up in vehicle sales will be deliberately slowed until we have clarity on our ability to access government subsidies, as all sales are currently effectively subsidized by Gogoro, and these sales delays will have an impact on revenue in 2024,” Gogoro officials said on the conference call.
“We want to make sure that the subsidy program is in place to ensure that we remain competitive, or at least equally competitive when compared to other vehicle manufacturers offering charge-at-home solutions. We cannot offset the impact of these subsidies with price cuts until battery-swapping vehicles become eligible for Fame or other government programs,” Horace Luke, Gogoro’s Founder, CEO, and Chairman of the Board, explained on Friday during the company’s Q2 global conference call.
The firm had been expecting to begin generating substantial revenue from its India operations this year, but this has been pushed to 2025 because of this regulatory snag.
“Due to the delay in implementing subsidies to include battery swapping vehicles…the majority of our India revenues are expected to arrive in 2025,” Luke added.
Gogoro Inc. has set up its first 20 Go swapping stations in Delhi and Mumbai. As part of its India expansion strategy, the company had earlier outlined plans to build 120 such stations by the middle of 2024.
“While Gogoro is continuing to progress with our battery factory build-out, Go station deployments, and building out its India team and capabilities, the company officials are deeply engaged with the Ministry of Heavy Industries as a founding member of the Indian Battery Swapping Association to ensure that the Fame 3 battery swapping vehicles and infrastructure are given the same benefits as charging electric vehicles.
“MHI is tasked with the overall EV roadmap for India and we are optimistic that our continued collaboration and advocacy will lead to the inclusion of battery swap vehicles in upcoming incentive programs, thereby supporting the growth and adoption of sustainable mobility solutions across the country,” the CEO added.
Once the government provides clarity, Gogoro plans to leverage its partnership with India’s second-largest petrol retailer, HPCL, to increase vehicle sales and establish its battery swapping stations using the latter’s extensive distribution network.
Horace Luke, speaking in greater detail about the prospect of battery swapping in the country, stated that India, Southeast Asia, and other markets are primed for electric vehicle disruption.
Addressing investor queries on India operations he added that the firm will tap its Taiwan experience to accelerate its international expansion.
Some of the parts for Gogoro’s two-wheelers and batteries will be produced by Taiwanese contract manufacturer Foxconn at its battery manufacturing facility in Pune.
Gogoro recently launched its pilot program with bike taxi provider Rapido, and the ride hailing company saw a 50% increase in revenue under its fleet operator model using the battery-swapping network.
Gogoro officials also stated during the conference call that the company has formed alliances with five Indian local electric two-wheeler OEMs, one of which is Zypp Electric, and that vehicle testing has begun for the deployment of these powered-by-Gogoro network solutions in the Indian market.
Speaking about the successful pilot, Horace Luke added that Rapido riders can earn 200% of their earlier income by riding a Gogoro with battery swapping, demonstrating that there is no downtime when it comes to battery swapping.
Luke expressed confidence in the India growth story for battery swapping, stating that Gogoro believes battery swapping is a game changer that will propel the firm forward in places like India.
Fundraising Plans
Gogoro’s global portfolio consists of approximately 2,570 Go Station locations, over 1.4 million battery packs in circulation, over 400,000 daily battery swaps, and over 10.6 billion total kilometers ridden on its network.
Gogoro’s revenue in the second quarter was $80.9 million, down 7.2% year on year. As part of its global fundraising plans, Gogoro also announced two significant investments, with Sino Assets Limited investing another $25 million in equity in addition to Castrol’s $50 million commitment.