EV push: Eicher Motors to pick 10.35% stake in Spain-based Stark Future

Stark Future recently launched its first high performance electric motocross bike, the Stark VARG

Indian automotive major Eicher Motors, the parent company of Royal Enfield, on Thursday, announced a strategic collaboration in the space of electric motorcycles with Spain-based Stark Future SL.

The board of directors of Eicher Motors has cleared an investment of €50 million for close to 10.35 per cent equity stake in Stark Future.

With this investment, Eicher will have a seat on Stark Future’s board and will explore further opportunities to collaborate in the space of electric mobility.

This investment has strategic significance for both Royal Enfield and Stark Future, given both companies are keenly invested in creating innovative and sustainable solutions for global mobility.

Stark Future recently launched its first high-performance electric motocross dirt bike, the Stark VARG, which received good response globally.

Speaking about Stark Future and this partnership, Eicher Motors Managing Director Siddhartha Lal said, “We love the vision, passion, and focus of the amazing team at Stark Future. Leisure motorcycles do not easily lend themselves to electric vehicle (EV) technology at this stage due to challenges like battery range, packaging, weight, and cost. This has resulted in stunted growth of this segment until now. Stark Future has been able to understand and harness the potential of EV technology by dramatically outperforming internal combustion engine offerings. They have created an astounding motocross motorcycle - the Stark VARG - as their entry into the EV world.”

“We believe Stark Future has the highest potential for real breakout growth in the EV leisure space with this model, and the potential to use this strong base to extend into other contiguous segments and beyond,” he added.

B Govindarajan, chief executive officer (CEO), Royal Enfield, said this was a perfectly symbiotic partnership.

“We are very excited to closely collaborate with Stark Future who are as focused as we are on challenging norms, pushing boundaries, and building uniquely differentiated offerings for riders. In addition to the sheer potential of Stark Future, we see immense synergies in this partnership. While they are scaling up and planning their market entry soon, we will support Stark in the industrialisation process. While they are the thought leaders in EV technology, particularly in light-weight components and innovative solutions, we, at Royal Enfield, will draw on these capabilities for developing our EV platforms and will also plan to share some EV platforms in the future,” said Govindarajan.

Royal Enfield has made huge strides in its EV journey over the past few years. The company’s research and development programmes have included major focus on sustainable mobility technologies. There are several ideas in the advanced stages of testing. The company has been aggressively building a sharp and insightful understanding of the EV space to create electric motorcycles with the Royal Enfield DNA, especially in the mid-weight segment.

 “We aimed to challenge and inspire the motorcycle industry with the creation of the Stark VARG and by bringing our electric technology from the drawing board to reality. To now partner one of the very first motorcycle brands in history, and be part of their journey towards sustainability, is a huge inspiration for us at Stark,” said Anton Wass, founder and CEO, Stark Future.