Swiss sports bike maker KTM, which has a manufacturing joint venture with Bajaj Auto, on Friday said it will start selling the electric model of the revived iconic Chetak in Europe in the first quarter of 2024. The 50.1:49.9 joint venture also rolled out the one millionth KTM bike from the Chakan plant near here. KTM claims to be the No. 1 premium motorbike brand in the world. The E-Chetak, especially the second generation, is a great commuter product for a market like Europe. If all goes according to plan, we should be selling this e-scooter in Europe from early 2024.
The European marketing season begins in March and we should be ready by then, Steffen Pierer, chief executive of KTM brand owner Perrier Mobility told reporters. Since its launch in 1972, the Chetak became a household name over the decades But since the company was made bigger than the bike, Bajaj Auto discontinued the Chetak in 2006 under the current management led by Rajiv Bajaj.
The iconic scooter made a comeback in EV form in October 2019 and has since sold over 24,000 units priced at Rs 1.4 lakh and is now available across 40 cities. Bajaj’s tie-up with KTM began in October 2007 and the first bike was launched in 2011.
Addressing the media, Rajiv Bajaj said that out of 1 million KTMs, half are on Indian roads and the rest are exported to around 70 countries. A Bajaj official told PTI here on Friday that the Chakan plant can manufacture two lakh units of various KTM models on an annual basis and last year’s production was around 1.6 lakh, which is expected to drop in the current fiscal due to chip shortage. I have fallen further.
Pier said half of the KTMs produced in Pune are shipped by KTM to around 70 global markets, while Bajaj sends a part of its volume to Sri Lanka, Nepal and Indonesia.
On achieving the 1 millionth milestone, Bajaj said, “When we started the KTM partnership in 2007 with the goal of cost-effective innovation and after 15 years, we have not only been successful but have also become strategic partners with a 49.9:50.1 equity holding structure .
And given our similar cultures, an ongoing and trusted collaboration has been created that will soon be extended to electric vehicles and next generation technologies. He also added that the plant is ready to roll out our high-end KTM bikes whenever the KTM management wants us to.