The automotive industry globally is switching to less energy-intensive options of mobility. Thus, helping reduce the environmental impact. Driving the change is various countries’ commitment to reducing greenhouse gases. This was declared at the 26th Conference of Parties meeting (CoP 26) in the United Nations.
The Indian government also brought various policies to accelerate EV adoption to minimise the impact of increasing import bills. These policies have come over the last couple of years. According to the government, this resulted in sales of about 80,000 vehicles.
Today, there are a lot of incentives on offer for the buyer and manufacturers of an EV. To enhance EV adoption and help the charging infrastructure set up, the government has increased the FAME-II incentive till 31st March 2024. The second phase of the FAME scheme aims to support 55,000 electric four-wheelers and 10 lakh electric two-wheelers, apart from other EVs.
In the next two to three years, EV acquisition costs will come at par with internal combustion engine vehicles. Furthermore, as per industry estimates, the commercial electric vehicle market will also grow to USD 150 billion by the end of the decade.
Today, we look at some of the unique startups in India that have caught investors’ attention –
Hop Electric Mobility
HOP Electric is India’s fastest-growing electric vehicle manufacturer. The company has a comprehensive ecosystem approach. Furthermore, the company closed a strategic round of USD 2.6 million of an ongoing USD 10 million pre-series fundraiser. With this fundraising, HOP Electric reached 105 retail touchpoints and 6200+ on-road scooters in 2021. The company is also aiming for ten times the growth this year.
The company is a successful mandate holder of GOI’s Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme. Over the next five years, HOP Electric will invest more than INR 2000 crore in India. Currently, the company is developing its next generation of Smart Batteries and Swapping stations. New products to use these technologies will roll out in FY23.
HOP Electric’s current lineup consists of – HOP LEO and HOP LYF. The company is also gearing up to launch a high-speed electric bike, HOP OXO.
RevFin’s Commitment To Accelerate EV Adoption
The company is a leading EV financing organisation. It eases the accessibility to EVs and their adoption for the under-banked and underserved. Thus, enabling micro-entrepreneurism. The digital e-mobility consumer lending platform recently raised INR 100 crore funding in debt. Northern Arc, Liquiloans, UK charity Shell Foundation, and more led the funding round. They will help RevFin expand the e-rickshaw financing businesses.
Recently, Hero Electric and RevFin signed an MOU to finance and lease over 2,50,000 electric two-wheelers jointly. This would be over the course of the next three years and collaboration with multiple companies. The companies will include e-commerce, logistics, and fleet operation companies.
Trouve Motor
A manufacturer of high-speed electric motorcycles and sports cars, Trouve Motor, brings blockchain integrated structure with its own metaverse ecosystem. The company raised around USD 3 million for its seed funding round. Furthermore, the company aims to raise USD 25 million by the end of 2022. This is possible through FasterCapital, one of the top venture capital firms based in Dubai. Trouve Motors will connect to FasterCapital’s vast network of angel investors.
The company will also roll out an advanced hyper-sports bike. According to Trouve Motors, the bike will be able to reach a speed of 200 kmph. At the same time, it can also deliver a range of around 350 to 500 km. To cater to more segments, the company will also use a highly versatile chassis. The chassis will span four bikes – a hyper sports bike, a naked street bike, Enduro and a toned-down Indian version. The company will also unveil a new hyper maxi-scooter, H2, soon. Trouve Motors completely designed this scooter in India at its R&D facility in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
Tadpole Projects
Tadpole Projects is also a startup electric-mobility company. The company incubated at Technology Innovation Hub (TIH) for Cobotics of IIT Delhi. It is also the only homegrown company which retrofits ICE to EVs. Tadpole Projects was launched in August 2020. The company aims to make renewable mobility accessible to everyone. For this, the company retrofits ICE cars to EVs to address issues around scrapping policy and expensive vehicles.
The company recently also converted its first premium car, a Mercedes-Benz C 180. Tadpole Projects also recently made its mark in India’s automobile sector. It did so by bearing the first IC vintage car conversion to EV – Austin 10 (1936) and Volkswagen Beetle (1948).
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