Dhoni-backed firm plans to unveil e-cycle gigafactory on August 15

A few weeks ago, cricketing icon Dhoni invested an undisclosed amount in EMotorad, an electric vehicle (EV) brand that recorded a phenomenal 370 per cent domestic growth in 2023. The latest announcement that phase one of the company’s ambitious manufacturing unit should be operational by Independence Day at Ravet, Pune, underlines the fact that EVs in general, and EMotorad in particular, seem all set for a great journey on Indian roads.

Designed to sprawl across 2,40,000 square feet in phase one, the upcoming gigafactory will be an expansion of EMotorad’s existing unit at Ravet. To be completed in four phases, the gigafactory will be the biggest of its kind beyond China.

With phase one operational, EMotorad will start off targeting an annual production volume of more than 5,00,000 e-cycles. Aiming to provide a significant push to an environment-friendly mode of commuting that would bring down the use of fuel, and hence cut vehicular pollution and maintenance costs, the gigafactory will manufacture essential e-cycle parts such as batteries, chargers, display units and motors.

The EMotorad gigafactory integrates Industry 4.0 standards that enable smart manufacturing and seamless control of supply-chain procedures, augmenting efficiency and productivity. The company’s long-term plans include expanding into other varieties of electric vehicles (EV) beyond e-cycles.

Features that the EMotorad e-cycle offers would include technology to keep tabs of the number of calories being shed while cycling. A geo-fencing app that lets the rider chalk out virtual boundaries for safe driving and a crash notification facility that informs near and dear ones in case of a mishap are among other features.

EMotorad was founded in 2020 by Rajib Gangopadhyay, Kunal Gupta, Aditya Oza, and Sumedh Battewar. By the start of this year, the company had emerged as India’s largest exporter of e-cycles and also the biggest domestic brand in terms of sales in its category. Within three years, in November 2023, the company managed to obtain Rs 164 crore as Series B funding, in which Dhoni was an investor, . The amount was utilised for manufacturing, research and development, and marketing at a global level.

EMotorad currently has more than 350 dealers all over India. Overall, the EV market was estimated around $40 billion in 2022 and has phenomenally grown over the past couple of years.