[TusharK]

Ather Energy is planning to invest Rs. 60 crores in its manufacturing facility in Whitefield, Bangalore. The factory has an initial production capacity of 20,000 units. The decision to increase the production would be taken after the first batch of scooters have rolled out.



Reports suggest that the Bangalore-based start-up has completed beta test rides of their prototype S340. It aims to open bookings for its electric scooter by early 2018, while deliveries are expected to commence in the second quarter of 2018. Ather will launch the electric scooter in a phased manner and will initially be available in 3 cities - Bangalore, Pune and Chennai.

The company is also reportedly in talks with various stakeholders to build charging infrastructure. Started in 2013, Ather energy is backed up by Hero MotoCorp and has also received investment of over Rs. 290 crores from firms like Tiger Global and Flipkart.

Source: Economic Times

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[sleepyhead148]

Few months ago, in a paid business magazine, I had read the following about Ather Energy. The article was partly critical of the company by stating that there was a lack of process and Ather functioned more like any other startup than an auto company. Good to see Ather coming up with the factory and hope that the S340 isn't like any of the existing electric scooters in the market.

The quote below had predicted a factory setup, and the prediction isn't off the mark. Also the person mentioned in it, Mehta, is Tarun Mehta, co-founder of Ather Energy.

If all goes as per plan, in the next two months Ather should be setting up its manufacturing plant in Whitefield, Bengaluru with an initial annual capacity to make 25,000 vehicles. But Mehta is realistic. He says it will initially aim to make much lesser, only about 10-15 a day. “We don’t want inventory issues, also it is about how many vehicles you can manage on the road,” he says. In this plan, by January 2018, the S340 should be under production, and by June the experience centres should be up and running. If you don’t see them coming up by early next year, it would be a sign that Ather Energy is still tinkering.