Ola Launches 1st Hypercharger Ahead Of Ola S1 Test Drives

Bhavish Aggarwal-led Ola Electric has launched its first ‘Hypercharger’ for charging its electric S1 scooter ahead of the launch of test drives planned for November 10. 

When completed, Ola’s Hypercharger Network will become the largest and densest two-wheeler charging network globally, with over 100,000 high-speed charging points in over 400 Indian cities and towns. 

The hypercharger is purportedly capable of charging electric scooter batteries from zero to 50% charge in 18 minutes, which is good enough to travel approximately 80 km, according to the company.

The hypercharger network can be used to charge Ola’s S1 and S1 pro scooters, which are released at ex-showroom prices of INR 99,999 and INR 1,29,999, respectively. The startup has no plans to open up the charging network to vehicles from other OEMs. 

The Ola S1 will debut with a 2.95 kWh lithium-ion battery, and a 3.97 kWh battery will power the S1 pro. Batteries on both scooters will come with a three-year unlimited-kilometres warranty.

Last month, the Indian automobile unicorn had raised $200 Mn from Falcon Edge, Masayoshi Son’s SoftBank and other existing investors, at a valuation of $3 Bn. The company is in talks for raising another similar round from existing investors and some US-based bluechip tech funds at $5 Bn valuation. 

The scooter manufactured in Ola Electric’s Bengaluru factory will face tough competition from city-based rivals, including Ather, Revolt and others. In July this year, Ather made the Delhi-NCR market its tenth sales location in India and launched 14 charging stations across Delhi, Gurugram, Noida and Ghaziabad. 

The Indian government has been encouraging and incentivising the adoption of electric vehicles with its FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacture of (Hybrid and) Electric Vehicles) scheme with a planned outlay of INR 10,000 Cr. But since the pandemic had slowed down EV adoption rates, the program has been extended till March 2024. Both the S1 and S1 Pro will be eligible for subsidies under this scheme

Electric vehicles are projected to have a market share of 70% and 20% in the commercial vehicle and two-wheeler segments by 2030, respectively.

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