Co-founders of cab aggregator Ola, Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati, have together invested Rs 45 lakh in Pune-based electric vehicle making startup Tork Motorcycles, reported Moneycontrol.
Based on documentary evidence Moneycontrol stated that the Ola co-founders invested in Tork in January this year, which was closely followed by a deal worth Rs 30 crore with Bharat Forge for a 45% stake in the Pune-based company.
The latest investment by Aggarwal and Bhati is in addition to the undisclosed seed funding they have put in the startup. Bhavish has invested nearly Rs 30 lakh while Bhati contributed about Rs 15 lakh, in lieu of shares.
Tork, which makes electric motorcycles, had raised angel funding led by Ola founders in April 2016 along with other angel investors such as CoCubes co-founder and chief executive officer Harpreet Grover.
In April this year, the company formally launched its Mission Electric programme, wherein it plans to add 10,000 electric vehicles, a majority being e-rickshaws, to its platform in 12 months. The Bangalore-based company plans to have one million electric vehicles on its platform by 2021 and has carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra as a partner for electric four-wheelers.
Tork Motorcycles, on the other hand, has developed a motorcycle, code-named the T6X, which is capable of operating for 100 km on a single charge. The company showcased the vehicle a year ago but has been unable to monetise it commercially yet.
Moneycontrol also reported that Bangalore-based Ather Energy is also building an electric scooter, which is also a smart device with Bluetooth connectivity and monitoring capabilities. The company counts Tiger Global, promoters of Flipkart – Sachin and Binny Bansal – as investors.
Another Bangalore-based electric vehicle startup Emflux Motors recently secured fresh funding of Rs 2 crore from existing and new investors. The company plans to launch its first prototype by October this year.
