Ola is set to launch its first electric scooter in India next year. This was confirmed by the company itself this week after it bought a company making such scooters. Ola has acquired Amsterdam-based startup called Etergo. And using this company’s expertise, it will enter the electric two wheeler segment in India and globally.
“Ola Electric is currently running several pilots to deploy electric vehicles and charging solutions across cities with a focus on 2 and 3 wheelers,” company said in its statement. Etergo was founded in 2014 and since then it has developed AppScooter, which has won many awards. Ola says, “the AppScooter uses swappable high energy density batteries to deliver a range up to 240km and class-leading acceleration.”
And it’s likely that Ola’s upcoming product will use some of AppScooter’s features as well. Ola’ entry into the segment comes at a time when traditional companies like Hero Electric and Bajaj Auto are also playing their part. In addition to this, you have the likes of Ather Energy and Okinawa among others. But unlike these companies, one can expect Ola to offer its two-wheeler options in the self-riding category on its app.
The company says it has already started working on charging stations and battery swap centres in Delhi.
Ola prefers electric two-wheelers over cars
You might be wondering why Ola is interested in launching electric two-wheelers, when it already has cars in its fleet. To this the company says, “Every year, almost twice the number of two-wheelers are sold across the world compared to cars.” And it believes that demand for electric two-wheelers as urban mobility platform in the future.
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Ola says it has been adding new fleet of electric cars. And it aims to get one million electric vehicles on its platform by 2021 in the country.