Ola Electric Mobility Pvt Ltd, a unit of ride-hailing company Ola, has acquired Amsterdam-based electric scooter maker Etergo BV.
The move enables Ola to foray into the global premium electric two-wheeler market. It aims to launch its electric two-wheeler in India next year, said Ola Electric without disclosing the deal value.
“With electric, digitally connected capabilities, two-wheelers will further emerge as the most preferred urban mobility paradigm around the world and empower every consumer,” Bhavish Aggarwal, founder at Ola Electric, said.
Founded in 2014, Etergo has developed AppScooter, which uses swappable high energy density batteries to deliver a range up to 240km and class-leading acceleration.
The electric scooter is said to have won multiple awards across the world for its innovative design and engineering at CES 2019 and Automotive Brand Contest, Germany amongst others.
The company has extensive vehicle development experience with leading automotive companies like Tesla, General Motors, Ferrari, Jaguar, and BMW.
“Ola is one of the world’s most admired mobility companies and has led the way for many innovations in the space, including its bold ambition for electric mobility,” Bart Jacobsz Rosier, CEO at Etargo BV, said.
With plans to set up extensive charging and swapping networks around the country, Ola Electric is currently running several pilots to deploy electric vehicles and charging solutions across cities with a focus on 2 and 3 wheelers.
Ola Electric was hived off as a separate entity from the parent company in April 2018. Headed by Anand Shah and Ankit Jain, Ola Electric focuses on deploying charging and battery-swapping networks for the commercial electric vehicles segment.
The company plans to deploy electric vehicles and charging solutions, including battery swapping stations, electric two-wheeler and three-wheeler services.
Ola has partnered with several original equipment manufacturers and battery makers and intends to work closely with the automotive industry to create solutions for electric vehicle operations.
The electric mobility arm of Ola has also attracted investor's attention in the recent past. It raised Rs 1,725 crore ($250 million) from Japanese investor SoftBank in a Series B funding round last year. It was also reported to be investing over Rs 700 crore in Bengaluru-based startup Vogo.
Several startups in the bike mobility segment have raised funding offline. In March, the Wickedride Adventure Services Pvt. Ltd-operated Bounce raised $6.5 million (around Rs 47.29 crore) in funding from venture debt provider InnoVen Capital Pvt. Ltd. The funding came just weeks after the Bengaluru-based startup raised $105 million (around Rs 748 crore) in its Series D round.
In August last year, the Roppen Transportation Services Pvt. Ltd-operated Rapido raised Rs 391 crore (around $54.6 million) in its Series B funding round led by private equity firm WestBridge Capital. Others that participated included BAce Capital and Shunwei Capital.
