PANAJI: Ather Energy, India’s first intelligent electric scooter manufacturer today inaugurated its new retail outlet – Ather Space, at Porvorim, (North Goa) in association with Eveer Auto Pvt Ltd. The Ather 450X, one of India’s quickest and smartest scooter, alongside the Ather 450 Plus will be available for test rides and purchase at Ather Space, says a press release.
The Goa government has introduced various initiatives to drive EV adoption in the state and aims for 30 percent of its total vehicle registrations to be electric vehicles by 2025.
The government has established a dedicated electric vehicle (EV) cell in the territory, incentives up to Rs.30,000 for electric two-wheeler and three-wheeler buyers, no road tax, and registration fees on the purchase of EV 2-wheelers. The government is also pushing for all commercial two-wheelers operating in Goa to switch to EV by December 31, 2025.
Ather Space is geared to provide a unique ownership experience along with complete service and support for the owners. The new Ather Space will offer customers an opportunity to learn about every aspect of the vehicle and provide a complete overview of the various parts with a stripped-bare unit on display. They can also book test ride slots on Ather Energy’s website before visiting the experience centre. Ather expanded its presence across multiple cities earlier this year, including Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Kochi, Ahmedabad, New Delhi, Trichy, Visakhapatnam, Jaipur, Kozhikode, Indore, and Nashik.
Ather Energy is one of the few OEMs that also invests in building charging infrastructure. The company has installed two fast-charging points, Ather Grid, which can be found at Porvorim and in Panjim. All Ather Grid locations will be strategically located in key areas of the city, making them easily accessible to EV owners throughout Goa. Ather Energy intends to add 8-10 more charging points to the city’s charging network in order to provide smooth and stress-free rides for EV owners. Ather Energy also assists customers with the installation of home charging solutions in their apartments and buildings.
Ather Energy has also inked a strategic partnership with BLive, who is the official EV Tourism partner of Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) to drive electric vehicle adoption by way of offering the experience to customers and also build charging infrastructure (Ather Grid) across popular tourist destinations in the country, starting with Goa. BLive has set up 5 charging stations for Ather Energy across Goa under the brand ‘BLive EV Zones’. It further plans to strengthen its presence by setting up 15 charging stations at prominent places across the state by end-2021.
The ex-showroom price post the Fame II revision for the Ather 450X is INR.145,129 & INR 126,119 for the Ather 450 Plus in Goa. These prices are expected to further reduce once the state government subsidy guidelines are issued.
Ravneet Phokela, Chief Business Officer, Ather Energy, says: “Goa is India’s most popular tourist destination, and every tourist is usually seen exploring the city on a two-wheeler, making Goa a strong two-wheeler market. Given the influx of people visiting Goa from other states, it has a lot of potential to lead India’s EV revolution. We are delighted to be working with Eveer Auto, who have been extremely supportive in establishing our new experience centre and in making everything possible with ease. The test ride requests and pre-orders have been good from Goa since the launch of Ather 450X and we expect a strong consumer demand with the recent FAME II revision.”
Karanjiv Singh Vijan, Managing Director, Eveer Auto, says: “Goa, India’s trend-setter and sunshine state, will be the fastest to adopt e-mobility in the country. Eveer Auto, a subsidiary of the Pilot Group, is super excited about introducing India’s most loved EV scooter from Ather Energy to the most loved state. Ather Energy hosts Ather Grid at the Experience Centre and is developing the largest fast-charging network across the state to provide an immaculate ownership experience. We are proud to be a part of Ather Energy’s journey in Goa.”
