This price bracket currently accounts for 55-60 per cent share of the overall electric two-wheeler play in India. But Ather had been conspicuous by its absence in this e2W segment.
However, the company said it will not enter the sub ₹1 lakh electric scooter segment until the government includes it for incentives under the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, which has been offered to legacy players but denied to tech auto startups.
During a video call with Business Standard a day after Ather declared its results, Tarun Mehta, founder, said: “Currently, the sub ₹1 lakh market for the top-five original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) is less than 10 per cent of the electric two-wheeler market based on our estimates. The rest is in the over ₹1 lakh segment. Our first Ather 450 model in 2023 was priced over ₹1.5 lakh, but with the Rizta launched in 2024, we had a product between ₹1. 25 lakh and ₹1.5 lakh. Now, with the new platform, we are aiming to launch a product which will be in the ₹1-1.25 lakh range that accounts for a huge 55-60 per cent of the electric two wheeler sales.”
On the sub-₹1 lakh market, Mehta added: “The PLI policy provides 14-16 per cent financial incentive advantage to legacy electric players. If we were given the same incentive, scooters that we are planning to launch would be priced less than ₹1 lakh.”
He also pointed out that legacy players are not pushing to sell sub ₹1 lakh electric scooters despite the incentives. This is because they make better margins selling internal combustion engine (ICE) two-wheelers rather than electric in the same price bracket. As a result the sub ₹1 lakh electric market is shrinking.
Ather admits that demand for electric scooters has far outstripped production capacity — for instance, currently, it is churning out around 35,000 electric vehicles per month from its existing plant in Hosur (Tamil Nadu) at full capacity. But the demand is over 60,000 per month.
It expects its new plant in Shambaji Nagar (Maharashtra) to be up and running by the end of the year. This unit will have an additional capacity of 42,000 EVs a month by March 2027.
He added, “For the next two to three months, we will continue to have capacity constraints to meet demand, though we are trying to add 10 per cent more production at Hosur.”
