Two-wheeler EV makers jostle for festive-season boost amid reduced subsidies

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₹1.15 lakh ex-showroom in Bengaluru and Chennai (it’s priced at ₹1.20 lakh ex-showroom in other cities) as it looks to ramp up sales to 10,000 units a month, after having slashed the price from ₹1.45 lakh to ₹1.30 lakh just a couple of months ago. TVS Motor Company, which sells the popular iQube electric scooter, is advertising festive offers worth ₹10,000, including cashback. Hero MotoCorp's Vida V1 comes with benefits worth up to ₹21,000 including a ₹2,000 cash discount.

Leading electric two-wheeler start-ups Ola Electric & Ather Energy have announced exchange bonuses and cash discounts on their scooters to boost sales. These efforts amid reduced FAME-II subsidies (the scheme earlier offered cash incentives of up to ₹40,000 per electric scooter), which have triggered new 'sweet-spot' price points. Ather Energy has begun to offer a ₹5,000 cash discount on its newly launched Ather S, its most affordable electric scooter, while Ola Electric is offering a ₹5,000 discount on its most affordable product, the newly launched Ola S1X.

Ather Energy said it expects its sales to rebound to pre-subsidy volumes by the end of the festive season. "In October we witnessed a significant increase in inquiries and test rides as the festive season began. To accelerate this momentum we have introduced lucrative offers for customers interested in upgrading to Ather scooters.