Tata Sons Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata has decided to invest in Tork Motors, a maker of indigenously developed electric vehicles, as the Pune-based company gears up to launch its much-talked product T6X, the electric motorcycle, engineered to travel at a top speed of 100 kmph on a single charge.
“In last few years, there has been a sea of changes in the attitude towards electric vehicles. This industry is changing rapidly and I place good value on the sound logic and the approach that the team at Tork Motors has taken,” said Ratan Tata, without revealing the amount of investment.
Known for supporting committed and passionate entrepreneurs with sustainable business models, this is just an add on to Ratan Tata’s long list of investment in start-ups, many of which have turned into unicorns, like Snapdeal, Ola, Urban Ladder, Xiaomi, Zivame, PayTM, UrbanClap and Lenskart, to name the few.
“Overall, I am very impressed and feel that this is the kind of spirit that should be present in every Indian entrepreneur,” Tata added.
Powered by 6kW lithium-ion battery lithium-ion batteries, T6X, the electric motorcycle from Tork's stable, manages 27Nm of torque and a range of 100 km on a single charge.
Top speed is limited to 100kph at present and its battery has a company-claimed lifespan of 80,000-100,000 km.The company claims the battery can be charged up to 80 per cent in an hour, by using electric motorcycle technology with its signature TIROS (Tork Intuitive Response Operating System).
Apart from analysis and compilation of data for every ride, power management, real-time power consumption and range forecasts, TIROS also learns how the bike is being ridden. Work on the T6X began in mid-2015 and its first prototype was launched in 2016. Tork Motors, in the past received funds from other investors like Bharat Forge and Bhavish Aggarwal of Ola as well.
Recently, the company has set up its first charging station in Pune and plans to launch it in the next few months.