Hero MotoCorp has planned to introduce two new electric scooters at lower price points in April-June while it also continues to focus on expanding the electric vehicle business through marketing and brand-building efforts amid robust margins from the ICE business.
In the first quarter of the next fiscal year, the business would launch one economical electric scooter priced at Rs 1 lakh or less, as well as a second in the mid-segment priced between Rs 1.23-1 lakh, Hero MotoCorp’s management stated today during a post-earnings conference call.
Hero MotorCorp presently offers only one electric car under the Vida brand, which has an ex-showroom price of Rs 1.26 lakh. Autocar Professional previously revealed that Hero MotoCorp intends to extend its Vida electric scooter line to four models during the next fiscal year, including one business-to-business product for last mile connection.
“We going to play in three price points in the first quarter, which includes our affordable and the mid-segment with a very competitive offering in the market. With that in place, we see that will have the right positioning to scale up faster in FY25,” the management said.
From 2025-2026, Hero MotoCorp eyes a portfolio of six electric motorcycles under the Vida range and another four motorcycles under its alliance with Zero Motors.
Further, Hero MotoCorp is also focusing more on expanding its charging infrastructure and retail experience. Vida V1 Pro, which was launched early last year, is now available in 100 cities through 150 dealerships across three different store formats.
The company, in partnership with Ather Energy, has set up around 850 charging stations across 100 cities and is investing heavily to expand the charging infrastructure.
Hero MotoCorp’s margin in the ICE business has already recovered to the pre-pandemic level. The company’s operating profit margin during the October-December quarter was at 14%, while its ICE business margin was around 16%. This gives more room for the company to spend more on the electric vehicle business through marketing and brand-building efforts. The company noted that its margin shape will allow it to fuel growth further going ahead.
Chief Executive Officer Niranjan Gupta added, “You will see the deployment of capital expenditure and operation expenditure more going towards electric vehicles, premium models. This resource allocation is key to growth.”
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