NEW DELHI: Ola’s newly-launched electric scooter has narrowed the price gap between battery powered two-wheelers and petrol-run scooters. Also, in comparison to many premium e-2Ws that at present are priced upward of Rs 1 lakh, Ola has managed to price its first product below the benchmark (even though just by Rs 1).
Ola Electric on August 15th launched its much awaited product. The EV comes in two trims - S1 priced at Rs 99,999 (ex-showroom) and the S1 Pro costs Rs 1,29,999 (ex-showroom). However, after considering incentives offered by state governments, the electric scooters carries a different price tag in many states.
For example, in Delhi buyers can get the S1 at Rs 85,099 while in Gujarat the final cost comes at Rs 79,999. Compare to this, ex-showroom Delhi prices for best selling ICE (internal combustion engine) scooter Activa 125 is between Rs 72,637-79,760 while that of Suzuki Access 125 falls between Rs 72,600- 81,800. Add to it, conventional two-wheelers have to pay extra for registration charges and road taxes which makes on-road prices expensive by around 10%. With the government’s recent announcement that EVs will not be charged road tax and many states announcing waiving off registration charges as well, Ola S1 could end up costing less than their ICE counterparts in many key markets.
This factor, along with its aggressive ramp-up plans can seriously dent the market share of incumbent players in the next 3-5 years, said market experts. “The 2W segment is likely to witness a more near term adoption from EVs as start-ups such as Ather, Ola and others have aggressive ramp-up plans. The threat from EVs could emerge earlier i.e., over the next 3-5 years itself. Thus, the second stage DCF (discounted cash flow) assumptions will be at risk for the incumbents,” said analysts at HDFC Securities.
Ola prices first E-bike below the benchmark figure
EV comes in two trims —S1 priced at Rs 99,999 (ex-showroom) and the
S1 Pro costs Rs 1,29,999 (ex-showroom).