Manufacturer of diesel engines, generators and pump sets, Greaves Cotton has increased its stake in Coimbatore-based electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Ampere Vehicles from 67.34% to 81.23% by investing an additional amount of Rs 38.49 crore. The said amount is invested in acquiring 25,73,529 equity shares of Ampere Vehicles through primary and secondary purchase.
Mumbai-based Greaves had first invested Rs 77 crore in Ampere in October 2018 and had acquired a stake of 67.34%. According to the company, Greaves’ total investment in Ampere now stands at Rs 120.49 crore (including control premium).
The step, which is aligned with Greaves’ long-term strategy of making a full-scale foray into the electric vehicle domain to capitalise on the government’s push for electrification, marks its activities under phase 2 of its engagement with Ampere Vehicles.
“As part of our next phase of plan for Ampere, we are committed towards building a robust local infrastructure by partnership or standalone investment, possibly in lithium-ion batteries as well, in a systematic manner over next few fiscals,” Nagesh Basavanhalli, MD & CEO, Greaves Cotton said.
The 160-year old engineering company is known to have earmarked Rs 150 crore for its EV foray with funds to be spent on Ampere, its subsidiary, over the next three years.
According to Basavanhalli, post the acquisition of Ampere Vehicles last year, Greaves has steered the EV maker’s market share from 10% to 15% in the electric two-wheeler space. Greaves’ acquisition of Ampere is understood to have given the EV maker access to a larger customer base via its pan-India distribution network of 325 outlets, besides finance and scale.
Basavanhalli said that Greaves Cotton’s initiatives with Ampere under phase 1, which involved introduction of lithium ion battery powered scooters, have resulted in a threefold increase in sales in FY19. Ampere, prior to Greaves’ investments, operated in the low-speed, lead-acid battery powered electric vehicles.
