CHENNAI: The Indian Electric Vehicle (EV) sector has caught the eye of local and global investors. The increase in interest comes on account of supportive government policies, growing awareness of the importance of sustainability and rising petrol prices.
As per the data, the year 2021 has already recorded 11 investment deals worth $519 million in the sector, while there have been 13 investments worth $165 million in the whole of 2020 and 22 deals worth $490 million in 2019. Venture Intelligence (see graphic). Deals run across the value chain in electric mobility – from battery manufacturers to energy storage to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The investment tally includes renewable energy companies Fourth Partner Energy and Fortum, which also operate in the electric mobility space.
Hero Electric raised nearly $30 million in the first half of its Series-B round led by gulf islamic investment (GII) and existing investors Oaks Asset Management To expand production capacity in July. Battery tech startup Log9 Materials raised about $8.5 million from various investors. Euler Motors, a three-wheeler cargo EV maker, has raised around $7 million this year from various investors. Ola ElectricThe $100 million loan from Bank of Baroda this year is the biggest ever debt financing for the sector.
Industry watchers said that as EVs gain critical mass, this year investors are more willing to bet on startups in this segment. Investor appetite has also improved with traditional automakers warming up to EVs. Globally, the shift to electric mobility has coincided with the growing concerns of climate change. However, unlike in the West and China, where personal transport is going electric, here two-wheelers along with three-wheelers and buses will write the India EV story, analysts said. Neeraj Mohan, head of EY-Parthenon India (EY’s strategic consulting arm), said technological breakthroughs have brought the cost of EVs within the reach of the larger market, and improved consumer sentiment. “India today is probably where Silicon Valley was five years ago in terms of investment opportunities and is rapidly catching up. As a result, the interest among global investors is high and this is just the beginning,” he said.
As early movers like Ather Energy, Magenta Power, Ampere and Okinawa With reports of growth in sales, and buzz generated by Ola Electric’s vehicles, more private investments are expected to come in this area. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Gujarat are some of the states that have given incentives to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles. Fitch Solutions said in a recent note that India’s electric vehicle sales are set to grow 26% in FY21-23.
Global VC and corporate ventures are relatively more active in the arms segment, said Nakul Kukor, co-founder and CEO of fleet-electrification solutions provider Sail Propulsion (which raised $2 million this year). SAIL Propulsion is currently gearing up for its Series-A fundraise and has received a lot of inward interest from leading VC funds, he added. EV experience platform BLive, which promotes EV tourism and has a multi-brand online EV store, said it has a customer base in over 50 cities and is launching offline stores soon. “We plan to increase our Series-A by early next year, by the time we have over 20 offline stores up and running. We are already in discussions with investors who consistently invest in this category,” said Samarth Kholkar, Co-Founder and CEO, BeeLive.
As per the data, the year 2021 has already recorded 11 investment deals worth $519 million in the sector, while there have been 13 investments worth $165 million in the whole of 2020 and 22 deals worth $490 million in 2019. Venture Intelligence (see graphic). Deals run across the value chain in electric mobility – from battery manufacturers to energy storage to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The investment tally includes renewable energy companies Fourth Partner Energy and Fortum, which also operate in the electric mobility space.
Hero Electric raised nearly $30 million in the first half of its Series-B round led by gulf islamic investment (GII) and existing investors Oaks Asset Management To expand production capacity in July. Battery tech startup Log9 Materials raised about $8.5 million from various investors. Euler Motors, a three-wheeler cargo EV maker, has raised around $7 million this year from various investors. Ola ElectricThe $100 million loan from Bank of Baroda this year is the biggest ever debt financing for the sector.
Industry watchers said that as EVs gain critical mass, this year investors are more willing to bet on startups in this segment. Investor appetite has also improved with traditional automakers warming up to EVs. Globally, the shift to electric mobility has coincided with the growing concerns of climate change. However, unlike in the West and China, where personal transport is going electric, here two-wheelers along with three-wheelers and buses will write the India EV story, analysts said. Neeraj Mohan, head of EY-Parthenon India (EY’s strategic consulting arm), said technological breakthroughs have brought the cost of EVs within the reach of the larger market, and improved consumer sentiment. “India today is probably where Silicon Valley was five years ago in terms of investment opportunities and is rapidly catching up. As a result, the interest among global investors is high and this is just the beginning,” he said.
As early movers like Ather Energy, Magenta Power, Ampere and Okinawa With reports of growth in sales, and buzz generated by Ola Electric’s vehicles, more private investments are expected to come in this area. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Gujarat are some of the states that have given incentives to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles. Fitch Solutions said in a recent note that India’s electric vehicle sales are set to grow 26% in FY21-23.
Global VC and corporate ventures are relatively more active in the arms segment, said Nakul Kukor, co-founder and CEO of fleet-electrification solutions provider Sail Propulsion (which raised $2 million this year). SAIL Propulsion is currently gearing up for its Series-A fundraise and has received a lot of inward interest from leading VC funds, he added. EV experience platform BLive, which promotes EV tourism and has a multi-brand online EV store, said it has a customer base in over 50 cities and is launching offline stores soon. “We plan to increase our Series-A by early next year, by the time we have over 20 offline stores up and running. We are already in discussions with investors who consistently invest in this category,” said Samarth Kholkar, Co-Founder and CEO, BeeLive.
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