India: Ola scooters sell 4 units/sec to set record, to be built only by women

India’s Ola Electric — a subsidiary of ride hailing service Ola — posted an automotive record when it sold four electric scooters per second over two days and racked up Rs. 1,100 crores in sales. The scooters are offered in two variants: the S1, which gets 121 km to the charge at a top speed of 90kmph, and the S1 Pro, which is rated for 181 km at a top speed of 115kmph. Both versions are expected to cost 40% less in total cost of ownership and the S1 starts retailing at Rs. 99,999 (~USD 1,350), including FAME-II subsidies. 

Additionally, the scooters will be built entirely by a 10,000-strong workforce of women — which is a milestone in Indian automotive history — and Ola expects to supply 15% of the world’s electric scooters by next year. The launch also comes at a time when India has announced that it will offer $35billion in incentives to automakers to boost the production of EVs in the country. Not many details are available at this point but the automakers may have to invest $34million from their end over five years to qualify for the incentives. 

Ford to consider developing all-electric police cars  

Automotive giant Ford is reportedly considering developing an all-electric police car that would be based on its new and very popular Mach-E model. The car would have all-wheel drive and may get a larger-than-standard battery pack to boost its driving range. A prototype has already been sent to the UK and one will be sent to the Michigan State Police in 2022. If adopted, the all-electric cars will be the next step to Ford’s lineup of the hybrid Fusion vehicles that have been in use as squad vehicles since 2017. 

Interestingly, Michigan may also trial the US’s first road-based inductive charging for EVs. The technology would enable the vehicles to recharge wirelessly by simply driving over a modified stretch of road, and broad testing for the project could happen in the next two years. 

England to become first country to have EV chargers in every new home and office 

The Uk government will introduce legislation later this year to make England the first country to have EV chargers built into every new home and office block. The step is designed to boost the confidence amongst vehicle buyers to switch to EVs and is part of the government’s plan to ban the sale of any new ICE vehicle by 2030. The chargers themselves will be “smart chargers” that will automatically charge the vehicles during off-peak hours and each new office block will have one charger for every five parking spots. 

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