India's electric scooter segment saw the arrival of Ola Electric on August 15, 2021. The company introduced the much-hyped S1 e-scooter at a rather competitive price of Rs. 1 lakh (ex-showroom) onwards, with a long list of features on offer. The addition of the Ola S1 is sure to stir up the electric two-wheeler space, and welcoming the company to the segment was the old hand and rival Tarun Mehta, co-founder and CEO - Ather Energy. In a warm gesture, Mehta welcomed Ola to the business while hailing it as a "big win" for the EV ecosystem.
Also Read: Ola S1 Electric Scooter Launched In India
undefinedGreat to see the @OlaElectric launch. Will push up EV volumes up even more and will drive more awareness. This is a big win for the EV ecosystem.
— Tarun Mehta (@tarunsmehta) August 15, 2021
Hope to see the legacy OEs also convert their capacities to electric asap.
In his tweet, Mehta wrote, "Great to see the @OlaElectric launch. Will push up EV volumes up even more and will drive more awareness. This is a big win for the EV ecosystem. Hope to see the legacy OEs also convert their capacities to electric asap."
The move does come as encouraging considering the Ola S1 directly competes against the Ather 450X. Interestingly, both companies find themselves headquartered in Bengaluru, along with Simple Energy, which announced the Simple One electric scooter with the world's longest EV range. With the EV segment still in its nascent stages, manufacturers are looking for a collective push that will help this space to grow at large, while also encouraging faster adoption of EVs.
The Ola S1 and the S1 Pro promise a long list of features at competitive prices
More recently, Ather Energy made its connector tech IPs public for other OEMs, in a bid to standardise electric charging tech for all two-wheelers. Ather argued that a standardised tech will make more charging stations accessible to the masses, further helping reduce range anxiety issues. More importantly, it will work as a catalyst towards building the charging infrastructure for electric two-wheelers. The company also announced that it will help OEMs integrate Ather's connector design in its respective scooters.
Also Read: Ola S1 vs Ather 450X vs Bajaj Chetak vs TVS iQube vs Simple One: Price Comparison
While the gesture is certainly a supportive one, it needs to be seen how both companies contend as rivals going forward. While Ather Energy has had a steep learning curve full of trial and error over the years to set up its products and facility, Ola Electric is going all out with a massive investment, huge production targets and a competitive price tag to its support. Do note, Ola Electric acquired Amsterdam-based Etergo to bring the S1 electric scooter to series production. The S1 and S1 Pro will not only be sold in India, but the Tamil Nadu facility will be a global production hub as the model is exported to markets overseas.
