WardWizard – which sells electric two-wheelers badged Joy E-bike – aims to clock volumes of 45,000-50,000 electric scooters and motorcycles in the ongoing financial year.

The sharp rise in fuel prices will accelerate the conversion to e-mobility in the two-wheeler segment  over the next three years said the chief executive of electric vehicle maker WardWizard Innovations & Mobility,

The company – the first in the electric vehicle manufacturing sector to list on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in 2020 – expects 25-30% sales of motorcycles and scooters in the country to come from electric options in the next three years.

Last fiscal 143,800 units electric two-wheelers were sold in the local market accounting for less than 1% of total two-wheeler wholesales. As many as 21 million two-wheelers were sold at its peak in the local market in FY19.

“Petrol and diesel prices are at an all-time high. Additionally, several states including Delhi, Gujarat and Maharashtra have announced incentives to encourage transition to e-mobility in the last one year, the central government has revised upwards subsidies under the FAME Scheme. Consumers are understanding that they need to shift to EVs”, said Gupte, chairman and managing director, WardWizard Innovations & Mobility. The company is seeing a sharp spike in demand the past few months, especially in rural areas, he added.

WardWizard – which sells electric two-wheelers badged Joy E-bike – aims to clock volumes of 45,000-50,000 electric scooters and motorcycles in the ongoing financial year. Of this, 60-65% of sales are expected to come from beyond the metropolitan areas.

WardWizard currently has on sale 10 electric two-wheelers priced between Rs 65,000-250,000. The company has 500 sales outlets across the country and plans to add another 250 such facilities by the end of 2022. WardWizard has a total installed capacity to manufacture 400,000 units at its unit in Vadodara, Gujarat. The company has made a total investment of Rs 200 crore in the five years to 2021.

To cash in on growth opportunities, Wardwizard Mobility is looking at investing an additional Rs 175 crore over the next six months to foray into the electric three-wheeler segment for passenger transportation and set up two assembly facilities in West Bengal and Kerala.

“Transportation costs are huge amounting to 1.5% of the vehicle price currently. The Kerala facility will cater to the southern states and West Bengal to those in the North East. This will help us improve our profit margins, benefits will be passed on to investors and shareholders,” Gupte said. Both units will be operational in the first quarter of the next financial year.

The company has received approval from the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) to raise Rs 49 crore through a rights issue and a similar amount will be raised from promoters. In the second phase, the company plans to go to the public for raising the remaining resources.

WardWizard Innovations & Mobility reported net profit of Rs 1.61 crore in the three months to Sep 30, 2021 against Rs 27.98 lakh in the corresponding period of the last financial year. The company currently has a market capitalisation of around Rs 1600 crore.

Source : ETAuto