Electric two-wheeler mobility platform eBikeGo entered the luxury electric three-wheeler market by acquiring the rights to manufacture in India the smart electric trike ‘Velocipedo’ of leading Spanish automotive company Torrot, eBikeGo said in a statement.
This acquisition will address a niche segment in the Indian mobility sector, particularly in the electric vehicle (EV) segment. With this, eBikeGo now plans to enter the luxury electric three-wheeler industry and aims to manufacture these scooters.
Velocipedo is meant to provide all the benefits of an electric scooter to consumers, but in a more secure and handy way. The three-wheeled Velocipedo has bagged the RedDot Design Award, a coveted award for design, the release said.
Earlier this month, eBikeGo had acquired tech firm Kustard Technologies for $2 million (Rs 14.7 crore).
Mumbai-based eBikeGo aims to also launch EBG Matics (advance telematics for EV) by April 2022.
Named after Velocipedes, the pioneer who initiated the start of horseless transportation, Velocipedo is a smart electric trike that looks like a tadpole tricycle. It is equipped with two front wheels and one rear wheel. Velocipedo has a carbon fibre roof that serves as a roll cage for its two occupants, the release said.
Velocipedo will be produced in three basic models: as a personal vehicle, Trick Taxi and a cargo vehicle, in Pune in India at the start of the coming year.
“We are extremely happy to have acquired one of the leading international automotive companies for the manufacturing of Electric Trike Velocipedo in the Indian market, pertaining to the requirement of Indian consumers and infrastructure,” said Dr Irfan Khan, founder & CEO, eBikeGo in the statement.
He added, “This acquisition will put the Indian EV industry on the global map. The future of mobility is electric, and the post-covid world presents an opportunity for us to accelerate the adoption of electric mobility globally. With electric, digitally-connected capabilities, three-wheelers will further emerge as the most preferred urban mobility paradigm around the world and will empower every consumer."
Earlier this year, eBikeGo raised $1.5 million (Rs 11 crore) in a pre-Series A fundraising exercise. This was backed by Bollywood singer Sukhbir Singh, Quess Corp Ltd CEO Vijay Sivaram, Asian Institute of Technology’s Brahmanand Mohanty, and Mungo Befestigungstechnik AG chairman Alparslan Kutukcuoglu.
Prior to this, the startup says it raised $700,000 last year from a clutch of angel backers and firms, including GSF Accelerator’s Rajesh Sawhney, Sarcha Advisors’ Rohit Chanana, Startup Buddy, and Girish Chitale. Launched in 2017, eBikeGo, operated by Think Ebikego Pvt Ltd, is an EV-based logistics firm that does last-mile delivery for sectors including e-commerce, food delivery, groceries and urban mobility. It began operations in 2019, and is present in seven cities in India working with major last-mile delivery companies, the statement says.
The EV sector has been attracting investors in the last few years. Some companies that invested in the EV sector in 2020 and this year, include Ohm Mobility, aerial mobility firm The ePlane Company, and electric scooter manufacturer Ather Energy.
Torrot was founded in Vitoria by Don Luis Iriondo in 1948, and began with the manufacturing of tough touring and road bicycles, with Orbea and BH following soon after. In the 1950s, Don Luis formed Terrot S.A.E., a licence manufacturing arrangement to produce mopeds and motorbikes for the French brand Dijon-Terrot.
