Sustainable Development is the need of the hour. Excess usage of non-renewable energy sources might lead us to Day Zero, i.e. when none of these resources are available to us. Non-renewable resources take millions of years to get replenished and hence should be used judiciously. The most daily life-based example of the usage of these resources is the use of petroleum or diesel in automobiles. These two fuels are being used excessively by almost every individual for their traveling purposes. The need of the hour for quite some time is to use the latest technology and bring a transformation in the automobile industry. There must be a possible substitute for diesel, petroleum, and other fuels so that these resources do not get replenished.
This particular problem led to the development of a startup idea among two IIT Madras graduates namely Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Singh. It was in 2013 when these two guys started building India’s first smart electric scooter and named their startup Ather. Their main aim was to challenge the well-established Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) and replace it with an electric drive. Thus, solving the problem of excessive use of fuels like petrol and diesel.
Recent In News
The Bengaluru-headquartered electronics vehicle (EV) startup is planning to export its e-scooters to Europe, Latin America, and parts of Asia. As of now, the firm sells two scooters – a performance vehicle coming in three variants and a family vehicle with 2 variants of it.
First Traction
The B2C-based company raised its first funding on 1 February 2014. It was raised as seed funding. The amount involved in the deal was $65.3K.
Year-over-Year Analysis
In 2020, the total revenue generated was ₹48.8Cr and the growth rate recorded was 317%. The firm has raised $105.9M in funding by this year. The net loss incurred by the company stood at ₹219.9Cr. In Q1,FY20 the startup had a valuation of $445M.
For the next fiscal year, the scale of the company remained with flat as revenue grew by only 80.9% to ₹88.3Cr from ₹48.8Cr in FY19-20. The Stride Ventures-backed firm secured $46.4M fund in this year totalling its overall funding to $152.3M. A net loss of ₹233.3Cr was reported in FY21. The valuation of the firm declined to $212M in November 2020.
As of FY22, the EV startup’s revenue skyrocketed to ₹413.9Cr , reporting a massive growth rate of 368%. In this year, the company also reached its peak valuation to date. It was valued at $750M. The firm has raised a total of $297.6M in funding by 2022. The losses almost doubled by 50% to ₹344.1Cr.
In the cycle of FY22-23, the gross revenue surged to ₹1,806.1Cr from ₹413.9Cr in the previous financial year. The growth rate stood at 336%. There was an approximately 2.5X surge in losses as the net loss reported was ₹864.5Cr in FY23. The B2C-modeled startu has raised $303.7M in FY22-23.
For FY24, the company is currently valuation has surged to $679M from $524M in Q2,FY23-24. The latest funding in Venture Debt round of $24M was announced on May 31 this year. Rest of the financial details has not yet been filed with the registrar of companied by the firm.
Expansion
The Bengaluru-based electronicle vehicle producer firm recently launched its new family scooter Ather Rizta. This strategic move is no surprise as the firm wants to expand its presence in this segment , as it contributes 84% of the total two-wheelers sales in India.
The B2C-modeled automobile startup is all set to launch its Initial Public Offering (IPO) Ather Energy’s remarkable journey has been further bolstered by a significant investment from Nikhil Kamath, the cofounder of the renowned stock broking platform Zerodha. This move not only highlight company’s ambition and but also signifies the investor confidence in the nation’s sustainable mobility sector.
Competition
The firm currently has a market share of 12%. The firm faces stiff challenges from other heavyweights such as Bajaj, OlaElectric, PURE EV, and Hero Electric.
Acquisition
Hero MotoCorp an existing shareholder in Ather Energy reported that it will acquire an additional 2.2% stake in the electronic vehicle producer brand. The two-wheeler maker said that no government or regulatory approval is required for the execution of this transaction.
