Gogoro Plans To Scale Up India Playbook With E-Scooter Bikes & Battery Swapping Units

Taiwanese battery swapping major Gogoro is eyeing to ramp up its investments in India to manufacture electric two-wheelers in the domestic market and to build a battery swapping infrastructure to aid these vehicles in the next few years.

In such a bid to further push its growth in India, Gogoro has initiated the production of electric scooter bikes locally.

The unveiling of the company’s CrossOver GX250 electric scooter coincided with the launch of its battery swapping network in Delhi and Goa on December 12, according to media reports.

Gogoro plans to roll out three models in the Indian market: CrossOver GX250, CrossOver 50 and CrossOver S. Currently, only the CrossOver GX250 is accessible to businesses, with the CrossOver 50 and CrossOver S slated for availability later in 2024, the reports said.

Gogoro’s chief executive Horace Luke has outlined plans to establish 100 battery swapping stations in the country by 2024, with the expansion of these stations to Mumbai and Pune slated for the first half of next year.

These electric scooters will be manufactured through a $1.5 Bn investment in collaboration with Foxconn at a facility in western Maharashtra. This announcement follows Gogoro’s earlier commitment in January 2023 to invest $2.5 Bn over eight years in Maharashtra.

Luke mentioned, “The e-scooter will initially target delivery fleet operators and bike taxis, with a variant for personal use set to launch next year. We also have plans to export these vehicles from India.”

Having been a player in the e-mobility market since 2011, Gogoro introduced battery swapping for its e-scooters in Taiwan early on. The company went public in 2022 following its merger with Nasdaq-listed special-purpose acquisition company Poema Global.

Gogoro’s strategic partnership with Hero MotoCorp, the world’s leading two-wheel vehicle manufacturer, was announced on April 21, 2021, to implement its Gogoro Network battery swapping in India.

In addition to these collaborations, Gogoro has joined forces with other companies in India to electrify their mobility operations. For instance, in August 2023, the collaboration with Swiggy enabled the use of Gogoro smartscooters and battery-swapping infrastructure for more cost-effective hyperlocal deliveries. In November 2022, it also partnered with EV-as-a-service platform Zypp Electric, which plans to expand its fleet of electric scooters to 2 Lakh from 10,000 and widen its footprint to 30 Indian cities by December 2025.

With the Indian government actively encouraging EV adoption to reduce carbon emissions, the past couple of years have witnessed significant leaps in EV adoption. The growing emphasis on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices worldwide has prompted Indian startups, including major players like Flipkart and Zomato, to focus on sustainability measures, such as reducing plastic usage and increasing EV adoption.

Against this backdrop, India’s total EV registrations for the current year stand at 13.29 lakh units, a notable increase from 10.24 lakh in 2022, as per Vahan data. The robust support from investors, ranging from marquee startup backers like Peak XV Partners (erstwhile Sequoia Capital India and Southeast Asia) and Lightspeed to sector-focused VCs like AdvantEdge and Speciale Invest, underscores the burgeoning EV story in India.

Despite the ongoing funding winter, the Indian EV ecosystem has witnessed a commendable 32 deals this year, compared to 35 deals in the entirety of the previous year. Additionally, data compiled by Inc42 reveals that the Indian EV sector has raised over $780 Mn so far this year, surpassing the $758 Mn raised in 2022.

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