Ola plans to launch e-rickshaw by the end of this month and ahead of IPO

Ola is planning to enter the e-rickshaw segment with its new product Raahi which is expected to be released this month. Raahi will compete with Mahindra Treo, Piaggio Ape e-city and Bajaj RE

An electric autorickshaw is to be launched by Ola Electric that will be directly sold to consumers, The Economic Times reported. The vehicle will be known as Raahi, and it is expected to be released this month. 

Ola has been working on this product for years and it was their long-term plan to enter into the commercial vehicle business. The key competition for Ola Electric is Mahindra Treo, Piaggio Ape e-city and Bajaj RE in the three-wheeler segment

A person told the Economic Times that Ola Electric is about to make a slew of announcements in the coming months including on gigafactory, ahead of the listing. The e-autorickshaw is part of the same plan and the target is to do it in the next two weeks.

Ola Electric Price

Ola Electric's Price is also expected to remain similar to its competitor's electric three-wheeler price. Bajaj, Mahindra and Piaggio e-autorickshaws price ranges between Rs 2 lakh and goes up to Rs 3.5 lakh based on different models and add-ons. Last year, more than 5,80,000 electric three-wheelers were sold which is 66 per cent higher than in 2022, government transport website Vahan reported.

Ola Electric IPO

Ola Electric is planning to launch its Initial Public Offering (IPO) after launching Raahi, which means ‘traveller’ in Hindi. In December last year, The firm filed a draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) which is looking to raise up to Rs 5,500 crore through a fresh issue, apart from a sale offer of 95.2 million shares by existing investors. The company is planning to strengthen its position in the electric two-wheeler segment.

Set up 10,000 charging points

Last month, Ola extended the battery warranty for all its variants of scooters to eight years and also stated that the company is planning to set up 10,000 charging points by the end of next quarter, sell portable fast chargers, and expand its service centre network from the current 400 to 600 by April. It also listed four-wheeled vehicles as an “intangible asset under development” in its IPO papers draft.

The Economic Times also reported that Ola Electric is planning to open its gigafactory which the company will use to manufacture battery cells by the end of this quarter, Bhavish Aggarwal, founder and chief executive said in February. It is planning to allocate Rs 1,226 crore from the projected IPO proceeds for the gigafactory.