Dr Pawan Munjal, Executive chairman and Mr Niranjan Gupta, CEO, Hero MotoCorp at the launch of the Hero Xtreme
Hero MotoCorp is going to step up its electric vehicle (EV) play in 2024 by launching three electric scooters — in ‘mid’, ‘affordable’, and ‘business-to-business (B2B)’ segments — chief executive officer (CEO) Niranjan Gupta said on Tuesday.
Currently, India’s largest two-wheeler maker sells only one electric scooter, ‘Vida’, which was launched in October 2022.
Ola, TVS Motor, Bajaj Auto and Ather currently dominate the Indian electric scooter market, collectively holding an 80 per cent share.
When asked about the competition in the electric scooter segment, Gupta said, “I am not worried at all. Electric vehicle (EV) is like a marathon and not a 100-metre race… In a marathon, seldom you will see the winner is ahead during the first 100 metres. EV is that race.”
Overall, EVs are just 15 per cent of the scooter segment, he said.
“There will probably be more players coming in. There will be players, who will have to consolidate and fold. The next three years will see a churn in this segment as the government subsidies will not continue forever… The game in EVs has just started,” he stated.
Currently, Vida is being sold at 150 stores across 100 cities. Gupta said the company will be opening exclusive stores — each one with a size of 500 square feet — to just sell electric scooters.
Moreover, Vida will also be sold at revamped Hero stores and premium showrooms.
Hero MotoCorp domestically sold 14,046 units of Vida during the April-December period of 2023-24.
Vida comprised 4.53 per cent of its total scooter sales during the period, according to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) data.
When asked what will be the sales contribution of electric scooters among its total scooters during the next two years, Gupta added, “It is difficult to say. The EV market is still evolving.”
The company launched Hero Xtreme 125R, a 125 cc motorcycle, at a starting price of Rs 95,000 (ex-showroom) here at ‘Hero World 2024’ on Tuesday. It also unveiled the Mavrick 440, a 440 cc motorcycle. Bookings for the Mavrick 440 will begin in February and its deliveries will start in April.
On the Vida he said, “We are ensuring that Vida remains aspirational and yet accessible. Therefore, we are going to make the range affordable very soon. Over the next 12 months, we are going to launch a mid-priced electric scooter and an economically-priced electric scooter through the Vida range… We will also be launching a business-to-business (B2B) product. B2B, the last mile connectivity, is a big segment,” he added.
The B2B segment comprises sales to companies such as Amazon, Zomato, Zepto and Flipkart that use two-wheelers in their delivery fleet.
First Published: Jan 23 2024 | 9:34 PM IST
