Vogo, a two-wheeler shared mobility startup, plans to launch low-speed EV variants, while Yulu, the biggest in this space, is exploring high-speed variants as part of its product offering.
“We aim to introduce low-speed variants in the first half of 2021 as there is a market for this segment in short distances. We are finalising features and will have our own take on it to differentiate it from other products in the market such as speed, ergonomics and performance,” Anand Ayyadurai, co-founder and chief executive officer of Vogo, said.
The new product play is part of the larger EV strategy adopted by mobility companies to pursue green vehicle technologies to bring down capital and operating expenditure, and reduce their respective carbon footprint in a market where shared mobility continues to thrive as a business proposition.
Vogo and another two-wheeler shared mobility firm Bounce have each set a target to have around 4,000 high-speed EVs by the end of 2021.
Low-speed vehicles cost ₹7-8 per km when booked and can travel at a maximum speed of 25 kmph, do not require a licence, registration or helmet. This widens the user base beyond just gig workers and office goers to include teenagers who are often seen zipping through bylanes in large city neighbourhoods in these single-seaters.
The high-speed variant is much like a regular two-wheeler that can reach speeds of around 70 kmph and has a range of around 80 km.
Bounce is also open to exploring options to introduce low-speed variants that would solve short-distance commute problems in small towns, the company said.
Yulu, which has more than 10,000 low-speed EVs on its platform across four cities, is now toying with the idea of bringing in faster vehicles that would solve different use cases and expand its product portfolio. “Most likely in 2021 we would tinker with the idea. We know that there is a need for this product and that there is value and use cases in it. From a percentage perspective we are not giving a number because it will be a function of which month we launch,” Yulu chief executive officer Amit Gupta said.
Ola, the ride hailing company, is betting big on its EV strategy and aims to roll out the first two-wheeler scooter in India and other markets by early next year.
An October report by KPMG-CII (Confederation of Indian Industries) estimates that EV penetration as a percentage of gasoline vehicles will be 7-10% across categories in two-wheelers by 2025 and 25-30% by 2030. This could be as high as 65-75% in three-wheelers in the next decade. The report estimates that there could be 20-30% increase (commercial) and 10-15% (passenger) in four-wheeler EV penetration by 2030.
The lockdown imposed to check the spread of coronavirus has prompted several existing players and some new ones to explore other business verticals, spread out its revenue inflows and circumvent the risk associated with latching on to a single product offering. EVs play into the larger strategy of governments world over continuing to pursue green technologies to bring down emissions and move to more sustainable transport solutions.
However, regulatory challenges in India, the relatively high cost of ownership, and inadequate charging infrastructure is likely to weigh in on this transition compared to countries such as neighbouring China. However, shared mobility startups are seeing a rise in demand for these products that allow customers to use them but not be burdened with the high cost of ownership. Besides, battery swapping technology solutions ease a range of anxiety issues.
There is also a rising demand from e-commerce companies for use of EV categories such as three-wheelers. The government is warming up to this segment with some policy changes and has even proposed to provide a regulatory sandbox for companies to undertake innovation in road mobility.
This article was first published on livemint.com