EXCLUSIVE: There’s no shortcut to testing EVs in real-world conditions, says Ather Energy

Bengaluru-based EV maker Ather Energy recently said that it recorded its highest-ever monthly sales of 3787 units in May for its two smart electric scooters—450X and 450 Plus --  that it currently retails in the Indian market. At a time when electric scooters are getting bad press for frequent fire incidents, overheating issues, faulty parts, etc., electric two-wheeler makers like Ather are looking to educate EV customers which will help them maintain growth momentum in the long-term as for most OEM’s (original equipment makers), demand outstrips the supply.

 Ather said that right now the situation is not that alarming. 

“There’s localised fear today but the situation is not worrisome. People are assuming it as stray cases with a few OEMs as opposed to a fundamental generic EV problem. There will always be some people who’ll be nervous but we’re not at a stage where it's becoming alarming for the industry,” Ravneet Phokela, Chief Business Officer, Ather Energy told Business Today.

 “But if this persists then as industry we need to do some soul searching. We’re keeping an eye on this but it’s not something which is keeping us awake,” he adds.

 “Fundamentally, it’s a question of quality and how well your battery is designed, what quality cells you use, how are they put together, etc. There’s a whole lot of testing in real world conditions which a lot of OEMs bypass. Simulations don’t work. There’s no substitute for running for lakhs of kilometres, getting data, rectifying and refining till you launch,” Phokela said.

This is why, he points out, it took Ather five years of development of the battery before the firm launched its first scooter. 

“It can take anywhere between 3-5 years to develop an e-scooter but certainly it’s not a one-year journey to get this right. It’s not a surprise that even the big OEMs take a long time to launch. There’s no shortcut,” he said.

He adds that since it’s a new technology, one has to invest time to understand, refine and launch it. 

“Our first commercial launch which was in 2018, we launched only in Bangalore and that too just 150 units a month to be 100 per cent sure of the quality before we started scaling up. After one year we expanded in Chennai. Then other cities followed,” he said.

Last month, the company signed investment agreements amounting to $128 million (approx. Rs 1,300 crore) with National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIFL) Strategic Opportunities Fund (SOF), and Hero MotoCorp and other investors as a part of its Series E round of funding. Ather now wants to expand its dealership presence to 90-95 cities in FY23. 

“We turned unit profitable a few quarters back. Now we want to add 4-5 new cities every month. We should reach 120 experience centres by FY23,” he adds. Currently, the company has 40 experience centres.

Ather has 3-4 months waiting period currently and claims to supply around 3000 units monthly.