TN in race as Ola scouts for land to set up cells, EV-making units

Mobility giant Ola Electric is scouting for land to set up its cell and electric car factories and is in talks with multiple states, sources said.

Ola Electric needs 1,000 acres of land to set up its cell gigafactory and electric car factory which is expected to attract an investment of Rs 10,000 crore.

Some states are already vying, sources aware of the matter said.

Ola Electric’s four-wheeler ambitions are taking a serious shape with some concept designs almost ready. It is in talks with governments of Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Telangana for land acquisition, they said adding the company is likely to finalise it as early as next month.

The firm already has 500 acre in Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu where it has built its Futurefactory, the world’s largest two-wheeler factory. A company spokesperson declined to comment on the developments. Ola’s current plans for additional 1,000 acre of land are for a separate four-wheeler factory for its much-anticipated car factory and for its proposed cell gigafactory that will supply cells for its 2-wheeler and 4-wheeler product range. In December 2020, Ola started the production of its electric scooters in Tamil Nadu.

Ola Electric was one of the 10 companies that submitted a bid under the Advanced Chemistry Cell Battery Storage Programme in India under the production-linked incentive scheme for battery manufacturing capabilities with a budget outlay of Rs 18,100 crore. It is the only Indian auto and EV company that has been selected by the government under PLI.

While its cell PLI bid was for the maximum allowed bid capacity of 20 GWh, founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal had blogged about the company’s plans to set up an even larger 50 GWh gigafactory to support its own 2W (two-wheeler) and 4W (four-wheeler) plans.

Aggarwal has already made public his intention for Ola to launch its first electric car in the next 2-3 years to be produced at a new 4W factory to be built, separate from the existing Futurefactory for 2Ws.