As the transition towards electric mobility gains steam, Royal Enfield – the iconic and longest-production British motorcycle brand owned by India’s Eicher Motors – is making rapid progress with its own electric vehicle portfolio. The brand plans to enter the market within the next 18-24 months.
- Ex-Ola Electric CTO now working for RE
- Dedicated team set up for EVs
- Planned market entry in second half of 2023
To make the plan happen, Royal Enfield recently brought on board Umesh Krishnappa, the former CTO of Ola Electric, to steer its EV entry. According to several people in the know, a dedicated team for the electric vehicle business has been set up in India and the UK to develop a plan to participate in the emerging zero emission mobility space.
Royal Enfield to invest over USD 150 million for EV development
Sources say that Royal Enfield will be investing in excess of USD 100-150 million in its EV endeavour. The work on a dedicated platform, internally codenamed ‘L’, has already begun and the company wants to have a range of products to cater to the different needs of global buyers.
The company is exploring a business potential of 1.2 to 1.8 lakh units per annum from EVs, within a few years of its market entry in the second half of 2024. The platform has been designed keeping in mind the global audience, so apart from catering to the emerging EV space in the domestic market, the company has ambitions to take it to some key global markets too. The prototype of this architecture is expected to be ready in the next 12 months. The company wants to get its product validated before the end of 2023 to be ready for a market launch in 2024, added a person in the know, requesting anonymity.
In an official response, the company’s spokesperson told our sister publication Autocar Professional that the company has made huge strides in its “EV journey” over the last few years. The R&D programmes have included a major focus on sustainable mobility technologies and there are several ideas in the “advanced stages of testing.”
“Our approach to developing an electric motorcycle has been very different and we have spent considerable time in studying and understanding the market and customers. We are strategically working on our EV portfolio and business model, and have started deeper investment in the segment,” added the spokesperson.
Meanwhile, we recently published what could be the first look at a future Royal Enfield electric bike. The company has also recently invested in Spanish EV start-up, Stark Future VL.
Azaman Chothia
Vishal Venugopal
