Yogesh Bhatia, CEO, LML Electric
TOI Auto spoke to Yogesh Bhatia, CEO, LML Electric, to understand what the company’s plans are and which products it will compete with against others such as Ather, Ola Electric, Simple Energy and Hero Electric. LML Electric is planning to become one of the top electric two wheeler companies in India by 2025 and they have some unique and interesting products.
new identity
The return of LML is being organized by SG Corporate Mobility (SGCM), which acquired the rights to the LML brand in late 2021. The new entity will be known as LML Electric. The company will work with Detel in the electric two-wheeler segment, which is also owned by SGCM. While Detel will focus on low-speed products aimed at Tier 2 and Tier 3 locations, LML Electric will focus on urban mobility and premium products.
LML Electric is currently in discussions with some state governments for a site to set up a new greenfield facility. The announcement will be made in late 2022 and the facility is expected to be operational in 2024. Until then, LML Electric will produce its vehicle in India at the former Harley-Davidson plant in Bawal, Haryana. In this plant, the company currently has a capacity of about 200,000 units per year.
For technology and products, LML Electric has collaborated with Erockit, Germany. The German company will provide the core technology and platform for LML’s products. The Indian company on the other hand will work with eROCKIT to develop/customize the products as per the Indian requirements. Asked whether LML is just a manufacturing partner, Yogesh said LML Electric is an engineering-intensive brand and will never be a brand that puts stickers on other companies’ products to sell in India. “Our products will not only be tailored, but will also be engineered and developed for Indian conditions,” he added.
LML Electric also plans to export its vehicles and will also manufacture products for eRockit in India and ship them to other countries.
The LML E-Hyperbike is expected to be similar to the eROCKIT from Germany seen in the video
Products: Hyper bikes, e-bikes, electric scooters and a performance motorcycle!
LML Electric has an aggressive and unique product portfolio for the Indian market. The company will unveil three products on September 29, which also marks the 50th anniversary of the LML brand. The three products include the LML e-hyperbike, e-bike and an electric scooter. The first launch in India will be the e-Hyperbike, a premium electric motorcycle that will offer pedal-assist. Yogesh declined to give us the exact details of the motorcycle for now, but clarified that the e-hyperbike will have different specifications than the German-spec eRockit and the Indian product has been around for almost five months now.
Based on the specifications of the German product, we estimate the e-hyperbike to cover a range of around 120 km on a single charge with pedal assist. The motorcycle is expected to have a top speed of 90 kmph with a power of around 20 hp. The deliveries of the LML e-Hyperbike will start around January 2023. At the same time, LML Electric will also start deliveries of an electric cycle (e-bike). This will be followed by an electric scooter, whose deliveries will start around August 2023. Though details of the scooter were not shared, it will operate in the premium space and could be a direct rival to the likes of Ather 450X and Ola S1 Pro.
In an exciting announcement for high performance motorcycle enthusiast Yogesh told us that in 2024, LML Electric will launch a performance-oriented electric motorcycle in India. Although the product will come at a premium, Yogesh promises that the product will deliver best-in-segment value and exciting performance.
Yogesh also informed that LML Electric has no plans to cater to the low speed and low cost EV segment. “We will offer premium products with unique and smart features, but at a price that will drive our customers accolades. Despite the high value equation, our customers can expect new age and smart technologies EV For us, it is not just an electric vehicle but an ’empowered vehicle’.”
Swappable Battery – Wow!
Interestingly, LML Electric will adopt a swappable battery model for its products. Yogesh didn’t reveal any details here, but he did tell us that the company is creating a unique solution for the customer in which he doesn’t have to worry about overcharging. He added that “range concerns and lack of charging infrastructure are major impediments to the adoption of electric vehicles and we aim to address this issue with our new concept”.
This is quite interesting, because at a time when almost all electric two-wheeler companies, barring Bounce, have switched to the fixed battery model, LML Electric is going the other way. While we are not sure what the unique solution is, it could be a combination of fast-charging coupled with home delivery or location-based delivery of swappable batteries.
aggressive development plans
LML Electric has very aggressive growth plans given that it will go up against the likes of Ola Electric, Ather and Simple Energy. The company aims to become one of the top three electric two-wheeler companies in India by 2025. This translates into unprecedented growth within a little over two years. As far as the products are concerned, we believe that LML Electric can shake up the market as currently the scenario is a bit hazy and almost everyone is making only scooters.
Premium positioning also appears to be possible from the facts known so far as LML Electric is fully focused on premium positioning. The company has also entered into an agreement with SPM Engineering, Italy for the design of its products to ensure that their products stand out from the competition.
questions
It remains to be seen how well the swappable battery model will perform in the premium space. Apart from addressing the range concern, this model also brings with it a set of unique problems. These include maintaining the consistency of battery quality during replacement, logistics cost, and manpower cost among many others. However, Yogesh is confident that the unique solution that LML Electric is working on will be the best for the customers when they launch their products. The company believes in its products and business model that they will start selling with a wide network across the country. While he didn’t give us a number, Yogesh told us that beyond the big cities the company will also focus on smaller areas as the price of their products would not be out of reach of the average Indian buyer, despite being premium.
In short, LML Electric has big plans and it looks like basic stuff is in order too. While the success of a business depends on many factors, the Indian electric two-wheeler space is certainly getting exciting and it will be interesting to see if LML Electric can successfully combine nostalgia with smart technology at no cost to itself. . All this while facing stiff competition from established rivals. It may not be an easy journey for LML Electric, but it shows the potential of India’s electric two-wheeler market. Electrification time ahead!
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