Hero MotoCorp plans to export Vida electric scooter

Exports could commence in the next few months, Munjal said at the launch of the company’s debut electric scooter range under its new mobility brand, Vida. This would make Hero one of the first exporters of electric vehicles from India.

“I see us beginning exports in the short term itself. We already have a plan. We plan to go to Latin America and Asia – certainly where we have joint ventures, like in Bangladesh and Columbia. We have an immediate plan for Europe. We had prospective distributors from Europe here (at the company’s R&D centre in Jaipur),” Munjal said.

The electric scooter, launched in two variants, Vida V1 Pro and Vida V1 Plus, has a dealership price of ₹1.59 lakh and ₹1.45 lakh, respectively. The price includes a subsidy discount of ₹60,000 and ₹51,000 for the Pro and Plus variants, respectively, under the government’s FAME (Faster Adoption & Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles) II scheme.

Hero MotoCorp has priced the new scooter at a premium to most other scooter models in the domestic market. So far, only Bajaj Auto’s Chetak electric scooter has surpassed the ₹1.5 lakh mark in dealership price post-government subsidy. Ola Electric’s S1 Pro electric scooter costs ₹1.3 lakh, while TVS Motor’s iQube is priced at ₹90,000 – ₹1.08 lakh depending on state subsidies.

Hero MotoCorp’s decision to place its maiden electric scooter offering in the premium category of vehicles gives it room to offer newer variants at a more affordable cost at a later stage.

“It is an investment. We are starting with a premium product, but it doesn’t mean that we will never have a more affordable product than this in terms of pricing. Surely, there will be those going forward,” Munjal said without elaborating.

“We may not have announced disruptive pricing, but we have a disruptive package,” he added.

When asked whether profitability was a focus while deciding on the EV foray, Munjal said the automaker would seek to ensure that its profitability also grows in line with its expansion into new product categories, “We ensure we aren’t all about cash burn”.

Hero MotoCorp’s Vida V1 will be launched in three cities initially–Jaipur, Delhi and Bengaluru, with a larger rollout into eight more cities starting in December.

Deliveries of the vehicle will start from the second week of December.

Munjal said the company’s next product will be launched in partnership with Taiwanese battery-sharing company Gogoro and will come with a swappable battery solution.

Munjal unveiled the Vida brand in March this year. Hero MotoCorp’s foray into the electric scooter segment saw two delays before the company finally announced in July that it would launch the scooter in October. One of the reasons cited for the delay was the shortage of semiconductor chips.

“Although supply issues are behind us now, if and when we have any issues with a certain supplier, we have already made alternate arrangements as well. We have brought in new suppliers and tested everything thoroughly,” Munjal said.