By Team PluginIndia
In this month's EV industry analysis, Raphae and Amit speak about how businesses are getting rid of petrol vehicles and adding more EV’s in their fleets. This clearly shows the value proposition that EVs offer to businesses. Electric Vehicles are way superior to Petrol vehicles in terms of economy, efficiency, reliability and performance and businesses love that!
In this month's EV industry analysis, Raphae and Amit speak about how businesses are getting rid of petrol vehicles and adding more EV’s in their fleets. This clearly shows the value proposition that EVs offer to businesses. Electric Vehicles are way superior to Petrol vehicles in terms of economy, efficiency, reliability and performance and businesses love that!
Video : PluginIndia Show - Rental startups prefer Electric Scooters and are kicking the Petrol habit
Rental startups prefer electric scooters and are kicking out their petrol scooter fleets
Amit
Raphae, here is news of multiple vehicle ride sharing and rental firms selling petrol scooters and are investing in Electric Scooters. The news article says, rental firms like Bounce, Drivezy and Vogo are now selling their used vehicles at a steep discount over the past few weeks.
Drivezy has sold more than 150 vehicles, all ICE two-wheelers.
Vivekananda Hallekere, co-founder of Bounce said the following.
"We are selling used two-wheelers and investing in electric scooters. It’s a win-win for everyone if we can switch 100% to EV during the pandemic.".
Anand Ayyadurai, co-founder and CEO of Vogo, said:
"We have outlined a plan to increase EVs on our fleet and are planning to phase out petrol scooters to strengthen our commitment to electric mobility".
Raphae
Wow! That is fantastic news Amit.
This is a big win for the electric scooter industry.
We get many comments from petrol heads, EV cynics saying that electric scooters are problematic, they are not worth it etc.
But this shows that the reality is totally different. Businesses are trusting electric scooters more. This will also give confidence for individuals to ditch the oil habit and move electric.
Amit
And you know what the sad part about the petrol heads? They choose not to see the reality. They are in their own oil bubble.
Raphae
Exactly, Amit. I love what Mr Anand, the CEO of Vogo says. They want to strengthen their commitment to electric mobility.
So this clearly shows the value proposition that EVs offer to businesses is too large to ignore. Ultimately businesses will see which product or technology offers the most value and Electric Vehicles are way superior to Petrol vehicles in terms of economy, efficiency, reliability and performance.
Amit
So we wanted to know more about this news, so we thought we will speak to our friend Mr Manish Agrawal, founder of OnePlug charging stations.
He is based out of Bengaluru and he has been following these scooter rental businesses for a while.
Please watch the video above to listen to his insights.
Raphae
That was a great insight from Manish there. I also like the fact that ride sharing companies are pivoting towards rentals. Rentals offer a try before you buy deal and many people will see the savings being made with EV's and ultimately become EV owners.
Amit
As they switch to electric, what kind of challenges do you think these rental startups will face?
Raphae
In terms of challenges for these rental firms
Just to let you guys know.
So what are you guys waiting for? So why don't you try the offerings from these electric scooter rental startups in your city?
Try it out and let us know how your experience has been. We will share your story in the ‘I have the power’ section of the podcast!
Amit
Raphae, here is news of multiple vehicle ride sharing and rental firms selling petrol scooters and are investing in Electric Scooters. The news article says, rental firms like Bounce, Drivezy and Vogo are now selling their used vehicles at a steep discount over the past few weeks.
Drivezy has sold more than 150 vehicles, all ICE two-wheelers.
Vivekananda Hallekere, co-founder of Bounce said the following.
"We are selling used two-wheelers and investing in electric scooters. It’s a win-win for everyone if we can switch 100% to EV during the pandemic.".
Anand Ayyadurai, co-founder and CEO of Vogo, said:
"We have outlined a plan to increase EVs on our fleet and are planning to phase out petrol scooters to strengthen our commitment to electric mobility".
Raphae
Wow! That is fantastic news Amit.
This is a big win for the electric scooter industry.
We get many comments from petrol heads, EV cynics saying that electric scooters are problematic, they are not worth it etc.
But this shows that the reality is totally different. Businesses are trusting electric scooters more. This will also give confidence for individuals to ditch the oil habit and move electric.
Amit
And you know what the sad part about the petrol heads? They choose not to see the reality. They are in their own oil bubble.
Raphae
Exactly, Amit. I love what Mr Anand, the CEO of Vogo says. They want to strengthen their commitment to electric mobility.
So this clearly shows the value proposition that EVs offer to businesses is too large to ignore. Ultimately businesses will see which product or technology offers the most value and Electric Vehicles are way superior to Petrol vehicles in terms of economy, efficiency, reliability and performance.
Amit
So we wanted to know more about this news, so we thought we will speak to our friend Mr Manish Agrawal, founder of OnePlug charging stations.
He is based out of Bengaluru and he has been following these scooter rental businesses for a while.
Please watch the video above to listen to his insights.
Raphae
That was a great insight from Manish there. I also like the fact that ride sharing companies are pivoting towards rentals. Rentals offer a try before you buy deal and many people will see the savings being made with EV's and ultimately become EV owners.
Amit
As they switch to electric, what kind of challenges do you think these rental startups will face?
Raphae
In terms of challenges for these rental firms
- If these companies can setup some 20-25 open charge points in every city they serve, customers will be more confident.
- Another important thing for these rental startups is to choose the right electric scooter OEM’s as partners. We would recommend choosing electric scooter manufacturers who are making efforts to localize their scooters and are also investing in RnD. Ultimately that will pay off for these startups.
- Also tie-ups with civic bodies and municipalities will help get right parking and charging locations.
Just to let you guys know.
- Bounce is a scooter rental firm that offers their services in Karnataka, Telangana and AP.
- Vogo offers their rentals in Hyderabad and Bengaluru.
- eBikeGo is a dedicated electric scooter rental firm that operates in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Amritsar and Jaipur.
- Mobycy is another startup offering rentals majorly in the Delhi/NCR area via their Zypp platform. You can book a scoter via their mobile app.
So what are you guys waiting for? So why don't you try the offerings from these electric scooter rental startups in your city?
Try it out and let us know how your experience has been. We will share your story in the ‘I have the power’ section of the podcast!
Hero Electric made huge sales of electric scooters during lockdown period.
Amit
This 2nd news item about Hero Electric selling 4,900+ scooters during lockdown. During the lockdown they had an online sale offer and that seemed very popular.
Certain other interesting ideas were implemented by the Hero Electric Team like - ‘three-day return, no questions asked’. In this scheme, a user can book online & try for 3 days then decide.
All this has resulted in decent sales for Hero Electric.
Raphae
With lockdowns being imposed in multiple cities and lack of public transport, people are looking at private scooters and electric scooters offer low running cost.
Also there is growing awareness about the comfort and economy of electric scooters.
With removable batteries and incredible low costs of charging using a petrol scooter does not make sense for 90% of the population who use a scooter for short errands.
Amit
This 2nd news item about Hero Electric selling 4,900+ scooters during lockdown. During the lockdown they had an online sale offer and that seemed very popular.
Certain other interesting ideas were implemented by the Hero Electric Team like - ‘three-day return, no questions asked’. In this scheme, a user can book online & try for 3 days then decide.
All this has resulted in decent sales for Hero Electric.
Raphae
With lockdowns being imposed in multiple cities and lack of public transport, people are looking at private scooters and electric scooters offer low running cost.
Also there is growing awareness about the comfort and economy of electric scooters.
With removable batteries and incredible low costs of charging using a petrol scooter does not make sense for 90% of the population who use a scooter for short errands.
Atul testing the Hero Electric Dash
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Hero Electric's offers
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Amit
Raphae, about the company - Hero Electric. I watched Atulji’s recent Dash electric scooter review video and I was not impressed. The design of the Dash was great but that was a copied design from Honda Moove as we showcased in the previous episode of The PluginIndia Show. But the plastic button quality, seat quality and general fit and finish, left a lot to be desired. Last year they sold around 60k scooters. Which is almost half of the total electric scooters sold by all OEMs. I wonder how they are able to sell in-spite of the average quality. What do u think about their popularity?
Raphae
Regarding your question, Amit, about the popularity of Hero Electric. You have to realize that Hero Electric has 300 touchpoints pan India in small towns. And more importantly they have the Hero brand name, which counts especially in small towns. People just want a point of transport from A to B and these low speed electric scooters fit perfectly.
Amit
Yes. I agree. Also being a 10+ year old company, I would like to see them invest more in RnD and launch awesome products. The company is such a big name and has potential to do so much more.
Raphae
I feel Hero Electric needs smart leadership. The existing leadership has done a great job in getting them to a market leader position. But to take it to the next level, they needs new directions and ideas.
Amit
We expect more from you, Hero Electric team! We wish you to beat your last year sales numbers!
Raphae, about the company - Hero Electric. I watched Atulji’s recent Dash electric scooter review video and I was not impressed. The design of the Dash was great but that was a copied design from Honda Moove as we showcased in the previous episode of The PluginIndia Show. But the plastic button quality, seat quality and general fit and finish, left a lot to be desired. Last year they sold around 60k scooters. Which is almost half of the total electric scooters sold by all OEMs. I wonder how they are able to sell in-spite of the average quality. What do u think about their popularity?
Raphae
Regarding your question, Amit, about the popularity of Hero Electric. You have to realize that Hero Electric has 300 touchpoints pan India in small towns. And more importantly they have the Hero brand name, which counts especially in small towns. People just want a point of transport from A to B and these low speed electric scooters fit perfectly.
Amit
Yes. I agree. Also being a 10+ year old company, I would like to see them invest more in RnD and launch awesome products. The company is such a big name and has potential to do so much more.
Raphae
I feel Hero Electric needs smart leadership. The existing leadership has done a great job in getting them to a market leader position. But to take it to the next level, they needs new directions and ideas.
Amit
We expect more from you, Hero Electric team! We wish you to beat your last year sales numbers!
India and Argentina sign an agreement for technology development in the field of Lithium.
Amit
In our next news item, India and Argentina now have a strategic agreement to establish a commercial link and joint scientific-technological development in the field of Lithium.
The MoU was inked between JEMSE, an Argentine state-owned enterprise, and the Indian joint venture company namely Khanij Bidesh India Ltd. (KABIL) in presence of Indian Minister of Mines, Sushil Kumar and the ambassadors of both countries.
Raphae
That is great to hear Amit. This gives India great access to Lithium ore and its processing and will enable us to move away from Chinese dependency.
I was curious about this firm Khanij Bidesh. Apparently this was a joint venture between National Aluminium Company, Hindustan Copper Ltd and Mineral Exploration Corporation Ltd.
This JV ultimately resulted in the formation of Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL) to scout for strategic mineral assets like lithium and cobalt, abroad.
Amit
Just to understand the facts - Argentina, Chile and Bolivia hold 70% of the world’s reserves of Lithium. Argentina has 1.7 million tons of Lithium the 3rd largest reserve
The world in 2019 used around 77,000 tons for mobile phone, consumer electronics and EV batteries.
So as we discussed in one of previous episodes of the PluginIndia show.
There is a lot of Lithium to last us many decades.
Amit
In our next news item, India and Argentina now have a strategic agreement to establish a commercial link and joint scientific-technological development in the field of Lithium.
The MoU was inked between JEMSE, an Argentine state-owned enterprise, and the Indian joint venture company namely Khanij Bidesh India Ltd. (KABIL) in presence of Indian Minister of Mines, Sushil Kumar and the ambassadors of both countries.
Raphae
That is great to hear Amit. This gives India great access to Lithium ore and its processing and will enable us to move away from Chinese dependency.
I was curious about this firm Khanij Bidesh. Apparently this was a joint venture between National Aluminium Company, Hindustan Copper Ltd and Mineral Exploration Corporation Ltd.
This JV ultimately resulted in the formation of Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL) to scout for strategic mineral assets like lithium and cobalt, abroad.
Amit
Just to understand the facts - Argentina, Chile and Bolivia hold 70% of the world’s reserves of Lithium. Argentina has 1.7 million tons of Lithium the 3rd largest reserve
The world in 2019 used around 77,000 tons for mobile phone, consumer electronics and EV batteries.
So as we discussed in one of previous episodes of the PluginIndia show.
There is a lot of Lithium to last us many decades.
Daniel Chuburu, ambassador of Argentina in India said the following
"In order to develop a competitive EV battery industry, India needs not only to acquire a substantial amount of lithium but also needs to access to the best quality raw lithium, which can be found in Argentina"
Raphae
This is very exciting, Amit. This shows the Indian government is committed to Electric mobility. By ensuring we have quality reserves of Lithium from a non China source. That is also a huge plus.
Amit
Agreed Raphae. This is very exciting for the Indian EV Industry. But i also want to talk about another point.
Raphae, every-time i see an electric vehicle video or an article on batteries or Lithium, there are always one or two comments from cynics who say -
"Oh Lithium is so awful. The mines that are dug to get the lithium is horrible for environment!"
Raphae
Haha! It’s unbelievable how people crib about mining a few kgs of Lithium to be used in an EV, over a 12-13 year period. Remember Batteries have second and third lives and minerals can be recycled.
Compare that to thousands of liters of oil that gas guzzlers burn. Not to mention the pollution caused and 0 recyclability. The environmental impact of oil is way more than minerals used in a battery.
Amit
We get such comments mainly from petrol heads who hate EV's or from people who are fed misinformation by campaigns run by the fossil fuel industry who have an agenda against EV’s.
So the next time your friends or anyone else talks nonsense about Batteries or Lithium, you guys know how to respond.
"In order to develop a competitive EV battery industry, India needs not only to acquire a substantial amount of lithium but also needs to access to the best quality raw lithium, which can be found in Argentina"
Raphae
This is very exciting, Amit. This shows the Indian government is committed to Electric mobility. By ensuring we have quality reserves of Lithium from a non China source. That is also a huge plus.
Amit
Agreed Raphae. This is very exciting for the Indian EV Industry. But i also want to talk about another point.
Raphae, every-time i see an electric vehicle video or an article on batteries or Lithium, there are always one or two comments from cynics who say -
"Oh Lithium is so awful. The mines that are dug to get the lithium is horrible for environment!"
Raphae
Haha! It’s unbelievable how people crib about mining a few kgs of Lithium to be used in an EV, over a 12-13 year period. Remember Batteries have second and third lives and minerals can be recycled.
Compare that to thousands of liters of oil that gas guzzlers burn. Not to mention the pollution caused and 0 recyclability. The environmental impact of oil is way more than minerals used in a battery.
Amit
We get such comments mainly from petrol heads who hate EV's or from people who are fed misinformation by campaigns run by the fossil fuel industry who have an agenda against EV’s.
So the next time your friends or anyone else talks nonsense about Batteries or Lithium, you guys know how to respond.
EV Twitter World
Amit
Apparently Mr Nitish Roy had some issues with the Battery Management system of his MG ZS EV and the MG Motors team replaced his entire battery!
Apparently Mr Nitish Roy had some issues with the Battery Management system of his MG ZS EV and the MG Motors team replaced his entire battery!
Raphae
Wow. This is Tesla style service. Way to go MG ZS EV team! This is a quick lesson for Mahindra electric, who's customer's e2o electric cars are in the service station for weeks for cell or pack issues. Amit Also Nitish has completed 2500 km in his MG ZS EV and he shared a photo of his mobile app, which also shows 66% SOC remaining. Thanks Nitish for this report and we are glad all is okay with your MG ZS EV. |
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Amit
Pathkind Labs is a growing network of diagnostic laboratories in India who also do Covid tests. They tweeted this
Pathkind Labs is a growing network of diagnostic laboratories in India who also do Covid tests. They tweeted this
Raphae
Here is another example of a business moving towards electric scooters. This again clearly shows, businesses are realising the benefits of electric vehicles. Way to go Pathkind Labs team!
Amit
We wish Pathkind labs the best and we wish more businesses all over India stop their Oil habit and go electric.
Here is another example of a business moving towards electric scooters. This again clearly shows, businesses are realising the benefits of electric vehicles. Way to go Pathkind Labs team!
Amit
We wish Pathkind labs the best and we wish more businesses all over India stop their Oil habit and go electric.
For the first time in the diagnostic industry, we have introduced electric bikes for our operations.
— Pathkind Labs (@pathkindlabs) July 11, 2020
On a daily basis, our riders travel 150 kms to serve you healthcare and consume around 1000 litres of petrol in a day. To reduce the carbon emissions, we initiated a change (1/2) pic.twitter.com/OkT3iZJlOf
Amit
Elon Musk tweeted
"Our true competition is not the small trickle of non-Tesla electric cars being produced, but rather the enormous flood of gasoline cars pouring out of the world’s factories every day."
Raphae
This tweet is poignant and really makes us think. It is 2020 and car makers all around the world are not serious about the pollution and oil problems of the world’s cities.
And they keep launching one SUV after another selling more and more large inefficient cars. At the same time delaying the electric car movement.
Unless the government sets deadlines for the industry it will be business as usual.
Elon Musk tweeted
"Our true competition is not the small trickle of non-Tesla electric cars being produced, but rather the enormous flood of gasoline cars pouring out of the world’s factories every day."
Raphae
This tweet is poignant and really makes us think. It is 2020 and car makers all around the world are not serious about the pollution and oil problems of the world’s cities.
And they keep launching one SUV after another selling more and more large inefficient cars. At the same time delaying the electric car movement.
Unless the government sets deadlines for the industry it will be business as usual.
Our true competition is not the small trickle of non-Tesla electric cars being produced, but rather the enormous flood of gasoline cars pouring out of the world’s factories every day
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 31, 2019