Kanpur based LML Electric has announced their plans to raise Rs 500 crore to finance the construction of its manufacturing facility and the expansion of the business.
In the second half of 2023, the business plans to introduce its first product in the Indian market to celebrate the return of LML, a well-known two-wheeler brand from the past in an electric reincarnation.
To launch its products first, LML Electric has already partnered with Saera Electric Auto Pvt Ltd, which purchased the Bawal, Haryana, production facility of American iconic motorcycle manufacturer Harley Davidson.
“We are planning to launch three products, and all are in different categories. Our first product, an electric bike (bicycle), is coming in the first half of 2023 for the European and the US market. Our second and third products will be launched in the second half of 2023 for India and other markets,” MD and CEO of LML Electric Yogesh Bhatia stated.
The second product will be a “hyper bike” — a crossover between an electric scooter and motorcycle — while the third one will be an electric scooter, he added. When asked about the investments, Bhatia, who is also the promoter of SG Corporate Mobility, which had acquired the LML brand and intellectual property last year in August, said Rs 350 crore has been earmarked for the first phase, including the acquisition of the brand, product development, and initial production.
He further said LML Electric is “exploring to raise Rs 400 crore to Rs 500 crore” to fund its future expansion plans in India and abroad, including setting up of its own manufacturing unit.
While the company has signed an MoU with Saera Electric Auto to roll out its products from the latter’s Bawal plant, Bhatia said, “Parallelly, we are also exploring to set up our own manufacturing plant…Over 18 months to two years, we will set up our own facility.”
In terms of production capacity, he said, “We are looking at almost one million units annually after 2025.” The Bawal manufacturing facility has an annual capacity to produce 2.25 lakh units per year, he added
On the sales network, Bhatia said the company plans to have a footprint in every district of India with a partner in the next three to five years. One of the popular two-wheeler brands in the 1990s, Kanpur-based LML had fallen into tough times and went into insolvency. It was ordered for liquidation by National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Allahabad Bench, in March 2018.
The Bhatia-controlled SG Corporate Mobility, which is into electronic consumer products and electric two-wheeler under its flagship Detel brand, acquired the LML brand and intellectual property from the erstwhile promoters Singhania family last year.