Ather Energy, an electric scooter manufacturer in India, announced on Wednesday that it has received Rs 980 crore ($108.27 million) from its shareholders Hero MotoCorp and Singapore’s GIC through a rights issue.
According to Ather Energy, company intends to use the money to expand its retail network and charging infrastructure as well as to introduce new products. “Last few years have demonstrated just how quick the EV transition in India can be and how it will be led by 2-wheelers. This round will allow us to expand our product portfolio while expanding our footprint,” said Tarun Mehta, CEO and Co-founder, of Ather Energy.
In FY23, Ather had strong growth. From Rs 408 crore in FY22, the company’s sales increased by 4.4 times to Rs 1,783 crore. The EV company also quadrupled its retail footprint, from 30 to 130 outlets, over the previous year.
Currently, Ather Energy has more than 200 retail touchpoints spread over more than 100 cities, as well as more than 1,500 Ather Grids that are part of public fast-charging networks for electric two-wheelers.
In order to target a wider portion of the two-wheeler market, Ather has expanded its product lineup with 2.9 kWh and 3.7 kWh battery options in the premium 450X as well as an entry-level model, the 450S. Mehta and Swapnil Jain, graduates of IIT Madras, founded Ather in 2013.
Hero MotoCorp, GIC, NIIF, Sachin Bansal, and Tiger Global are the company’s backers. Bengaluru, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Jaipur, Kochi, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Mysore, and Kolkata are among the more than 100 cities where it is now active.
According to Vahan, the government’s site for vehicle registration, Ather sold 6,835 units in August. In contrast, when the FAME-II subsidies were still in effect, 12,184 units were sold in March of this year and 15,420 units in May. In August, more than 59,000 electric two-wheelers were sold, with Ola Electric continuing to dominate the market by selling 17,389 units.
