IPO-Bound Simple Energy Eyes Large Fundraise To Enhance Production Capacity, Supply Chain

Bengaluru: IPO-bound electric two-wheeler maker Simple Energy is in “works” with a large fundraise to secure funds as it looks more capital for enhancing production capacity and in supply chain, company’s Founder and CEO, Suhas Rajkumar has said.

“We are in works with a very large fundraiser,” Rajkumar told PTI on the sidelines of the launch of its first family schooter Wave.

Declining to give the quantum of funds the company was looking at, he said, “it is not just the product that is going to scale… for us backing is important because right now we can only scale up to 10,000. But beyond that, we need to infuse more capital in our factory and our supplier.” Once the company has it, he said it can unlock additional capacities, which means “we can start dominating the market share”.

Launched at an introductory priced of Rs 1,09,999 in three variants — Wave S, and Wave+, the company’s latest offering will compete with the likes of Bajaj’s Chetak, Ather’s Rizta, and Hero MotoCorp’s Vida and TVS’ Orbiter.

Available in up to 5 Kwh battery and IDC range of 243 km (depending upon the battery power), the new scooter model across variants features multiple riding modes, including Ride, Eco and ECOX, while higher variants additionally receive Sport mode for enhanced performance.

The Simple Wave range is also equipped with portable chargers and supports both standard and fast charging with the range-topping model supports 0-80 per cent charging in 2.15 hours hours, using fast-charging capability, while a 750W portable charger enables convenient charging at home.

“If we have an ambition of being the top-5 in 18 months, the rationale behind that should be about how can we scale up production from here on and how we can utilise the models that we have today to reach the masses,” Rajkumar told PTI in an interaction.

“Unless we don’t do that, I think it’s very difficult for us to be in top-5. So, we are looking at about 10,000-12000 scooters by March this financial year,” he said.

According to him, currently the company has been clocking 1,500-2,000 vehicles per month for the past six months and added that though the demand is for around 4,000, supply constraints are catering to only 50 per cent of this.

“Once we do that, the IPO plans will be solid and we will have a clear-cut path on EBITDA possibility and what our contribution margins are and how we look at an IPO in terms of timeline and in terms of quantum that we want to raise. So, that is where we are headed now,” he said.

(Disclaimer: Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by HDFC Sky editorial team and is auto-generated from PTI feed.)