Report: P.Tharyan Photography: Mohd Nasir
India’s leading electric
two-wheeler manufacturer, Naveen Munjal-controlled Hero Eco, will be launching
an electric motorcycle in 2017. The company has also developed a special
ability vehicle which is waiting for certain government clarifications before
it is finally launched in the country.
This was revealed by Sohinder
Gill in an exclusive interview with Motown India in New Delhi.
“From the flagship product we
have an electric bike which will come out in 2017. We have developed the
product, seen its performance, we are tweaking it and it is ready to go to ARAI
for its six months testing,” he said.
He further stated that “One of
the products that is waiting for clarification from the government for
certification process is the special ability vehicle. This vehicle is so
beautiful and easy to ride for a person who has some physical challenges. The
government is still not clear how to certify it. As soon as it is certified, it
will be on the road”. He noted that his
company will not be entering the segment of cars or quadricycles for
manufacture.
Gill said that his company has
not been launching new products but has been definitely developing. “The reason
we have not been launching is because of the pricing. We have not kept our
R&D sleeping over it. We have a range of products now after understanding
the market,” he said. In the meantime, the Finance Ministry has approved an
interim National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) 2020 which would set
aside Rs 1000 crore towards supporting the electric vehicle industry in the
country. A majority of the Rs 1000 crore will be spent in directly making
electric vehicle cheaper in the country through the subsidy route. Also, the
government will, in the next two years, at least in pilot cities, set up
charging infrastructure for electric vehicles.
With a subsidy in place, Gill informed that
his company will in less than one year bring out a product with lithium ion
battery. “For two wheelers there will always be a fair percentage of vehicles with lead acid batteries. This is because the cost to weight ratio and
cost to savings ratio compares unfavourably even after subsidy for a lithium
ion product for a two wheeler. Unless there is a high performance bike and a long
range bike, lead acid batteries will continue. These batteries are also
graduating on the technology front. We
have adapted them to India conditions, Indian temperatures and Indian
vibrations. The batteries have started performing much better that they used to
four years back,” he noted.