Ola Electric, backed by SoftBank, launched its first E-scooters on 15th August – the S1 and the S1 Pro. The company said the e-scooters start at ₹99,999 (excluding registration charges, taxes, and insurance costs) and are designed and engineered in India to provide the best scooter experience in the world. A petrol-powered two-wheeler shouldn’t be sold further after 2025, according to Ola Electric.
In today’s post, let’s look at Ola S1 and S1 Pro Electric Scooters.
Ola Electric Scooter S1 & S1 Pro Warranty, Servicing & Insurance (evtalks.co)
From the Owner:
In a roundtable held at the Ola Electric campus in Bengaluru, Bhavish Aggarwal, chairman and group CEO of Ola, predicted that the scooter would not just be the best electric scooter but the best scooter ever made. “What we’re doing is making the best technology of the world. It’s been our intention to develop our own technology. Indian teams have done all of this here in this office, and it’s world-class.”
Undercutting his competitors’ pricing on scooters powered by internal combustion engines (ICEs) and claiming superiority over his rivals with an e-scooter, Aggarwal gave a clarion call to “reject petrol and commit to electric mobility”.
In his opinion, the traditional automobile industry leaves behind a significant amount of pollution, and the only viable solution is electrification. Compared to gasoline vehicles, electric vehicles are much more efficient and sustainable. The total cost of ownership (TCO) for the electric vehicle will be significantly lower than that of the petrol vehicle over a 4-5 year cycle, according to Aggarwal.
Ola Electric Scooter Competitors:
Ather Energy, Hero Electric, Bajaj’s Chetak, and TVS Motor Company are Ola’s direct competitors in India. Ola offers the S1 electric scooter (₹99,999) and the S1 Pro electric scooter (₹1,29,999), with a 3.97-kWh (kilowatt-hour) battery pack that will deliver 181 km per charge. From 8th September, you’ll be able to purchase the S1 and S1 Pro, while deliveries will begin from October onwards.
According to analysts, Ola Electric is set to disrupt the world’s largest two-wheeler market through aggressive pricing that undercuts the competition as well as its superior products and charging infrastructure.
An HDFC Securities analyst wrote in a research report that the Ola is competitively priced at par with the gasoline Activa, undercutting its EV rivals. Ola’s electric scooter starts at ₹85,000, which is cheaper than the TVS iQube (₹101,000), Bajaj Chetak (₹142,000), and the Ather 450 (starting at ₹1,13,00).
Clash with Tesla?
Earlier this week, Elon Musk, Tesla’s CEO, expressed hopes that the Indian government would slash import taxes on electric cars. In an earlier statement, Aggarwal stated that he was opposed to the government paring duty on imported electric vehicles. Aggarwal, however, claimed this comment was misinterpreted as his firm not wanting any competition.
Ola Electric Hyper Charging Stations:
Besides this, Ola Electric also plans to create the world’s largest network of charging stations for electric two-wheelers. More than 100,000 charging points will be available in 400 cities across the Ola Hypercharger Network, likely the world’s largest and most dense network of electric two-wheeler charging stations.
The scooters are also in high demand in small towns and cities in addition to large cities.
Ola Electric Future Factory:
As part of its goal to accelerate the adoption of e-mobility, Ola announced in December 2020 that it would invest Rs 2,400 crore to build phase 1 of the factory. Tamil Nadu will be home to Ola Futurefactory on a 500-acre site. The factory could produce 10 million two-wheelers annually, handling 15 percent of the global demand.
With up to 2 million units a year production capacity, it will also function as an international manufacturing hub for the company’s range of electric-powered scooters and two-wheelers across India and overseas markets, including the EU, South Africa, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, and Australia.
