Ola to launch electric two-wheeler in New Zealand

Ride-hailing major Ola on Wednesday said it will launch its electric two-wheeler range in New Zealand.

This will help support the New Zealand government's goal of bringing on road 64,000 new electric vehicles by the end of 2021, while also helping the public sector become carbon neutral by 2025, Ola said in a statement.

According to the industry sources, the company plans to launch the range in New Zealand over the next 6-9 months.

Ola's soon to be launched electric scooter vertical is part of its electric mobility business which has been set up to design and manufacture electric two-wheelers that consumers can purchase and own, the statement said.

It is a key part of Ola's broader vision of moving the world towards sustainable mobility solutions across shared and owned mobility.

As part of electric mobility, Ola is in advanced stages of setting up the world's largest scooter factory in India.

Once completed, the factory will have the capacity to manufacture over two million scooters a year, it said.

"We welcome and strongly support the move by the honourable Prime Minister and the New Zealand government towards carbon neutrality, especially in the mobility sector. We are excited about bringing our electric two-wheelers to New Zealand to further accelerate development of sustainable solutions," Ola chairman and group CEO Bhavish Aggarwal said.

Climate change is a serious challenge and Ola is committed to moving the world to sustainable mobility through its products, he added.

"Ola wants to play an important part in New Zealand's journey to become carbon neutral. We've witnessed strong and steady growth in the e-scooter and e-bike sector so we believe Ola's new scooter product will be welcomed by consumers as a way to contribute towards establishing a 0-carbon economy," Ola New Zealand MD Brian Dewil said.

Earlier this year, Ola announced plans of hiring over 2,000 people for its electric business.

Ola Electric has raised about $400 million in funding from Tiger Global, Matrix India, Tata Sons Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata and others.