Engineering company Greaves Cotton Ltd said on Wednesday it has signed definitive agreements to acquire a majority stake in electric two-wheeler maker Ampere Vehicles Pvt. Ltd.
Mumbai-headquartered Greaves Cotton will initially acquire 67% of Coimbatore-based Ampere for Rs 77 crore. It may buy another 13% for Rs 75.5 crore after three years, it said in a stock-exchange filing.
The first stage of the deal will be completed by the end of December, subject to customary closing conditions.
Ampere counts Tata Sons chairman emeritus Ratan Tata and Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan among its investors. Tata had invested in Ampere in July 2015. Gopalakrishnan first invested in December 2015 and again the following year.
Greaves joins a handful of traditional manufacturing companies betting on new-age electric vehicle makers. Hero MotoCorp Ltd, the country’s biggest two-wheeler maker, has backed Ather Energy Pvt. Ltd while TVS Motor has invested in Ultraviolette Automotive Pvt. Ltd.
Greaves said the acquisition will accelerate the development of clean-energy technology solutions for mobility needs of passengers and small businesses. Ampere has “strong in-house capabilities” in designing, developing, manufacturing and marketing electric vehicles with a wide range of applications, Greaves said.
Ampere, set up in 2008, posted revenue of Rs 16 crore during the April-July period of 2018-19. That indicates it’s growing at a fast pace; its revenue for the full 2017-18 was Rs 18.5 crore.
Greaves makes petrol and diesel engines for auto makers as well as two-wheeler companies. It also makes farm equipment and power generating sets. It supplies its products through a network of more than 5,000 retail outlets.
“Greaves and Ampere will be a synergistic combination of our excellence in frugal engineering and manufacturing with a new-age electric mobility solutions company,” said Greaves managing director Nagesh Basavanhalli.