Ratan Tata, Chairman of the Tata Group has invested in the Ola Electric Mobility, according to a media report. The amount invested is still undisclosed and remains unknown, however, it is a part of the Series A funding from Tata. Ratan Tata has also invested in ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd., which is Ola’s Parent company.
By 2021, Ola aims to bring 1 million electric vehicles on the road and Ola had announced its ‘Mission Electric’ in 2018. Ola has been running several test programs such as battery swapping stations and charging stations around India. Ola has also raised funding amounting to INR 400 crore from Tiger Global, Matrix India and others. Test programs such as deploying e-bikes, electric powered three-wheelers and electric vehicles are also being run by Ola Electric and Ola plans to bring more e-rickshaws on the road.
e-rickshaws are efficient, noise free and pollution free and they are easy to maintain and less strenuous than pedal-powered rickshaws. From a 2018 report, almost 11,000 e-rickshaws are sold every month and the annual sales are expected to increase by around 9%, by the year 2021.
Tata Motors is also going to venture in the Electric Vehicle market soon with the Tata Tiago EV (Electric Vehicle) and Tata had already showcased the car in the 2018 Auto Expo.
The Tata Tiago EV is expected to be powered by a three-phase, permanent magnet, induction motor with 216 Ah, 72V lithium-ion battery with a liquid cooling system. It may have an estimated torque output of 90 Nm and is expected to have a range of 130 km on a single charge and can charge up to 80% from 0% in 60 mins and can do speeds of up to 100 kmph. The battery, when plugged in a home charger, will take six hours to charge fully.
The Tata Tiago EV is expected to be launched soon with the Tata Tigor following closely. Tata may also be working on the Altroz EV and the concept H2X EV and the Nexon EV which is rumoured to be in its test phase. Together, Tata will have a total of 5 electric cars in their portfolio in due course of time.