RR Kabel-Backed BGauss Unveils RUV 350 Amid Glut Of Electric Scooters

BGauss Auto Pvt., a company backed by the promoters of RR Kabel Ltd., has unveiled an electric two-wheeler that’s neither a scooter nor a motorcycle.

The BGauss RUV 350, which resembles the Honda Cub in some quarters due to its 16-inch wheels, is powered by a proprietary “in-wheel hyperdrive” motor producing 165 NM of torque at the twist of the wrist. The 3,000 Wh battery, removable in some variants, has a claimed range of 145 km and is good enough for over 2,500 charging cycles.

The all-metal electric two-wheeler—available in three variants—will retail at a starting price of Rs 1,09,999 when it arrives at 120 BGauss dealerships at the end of July. The EV has an introductory offer of Rs 20,000, which includes an extended battery warranty of 1 lakh km on the top-end variant.

“The RUV 350 is not only a testament to our technological prowess but also aligns with the ‘Make in India’ initiative,” Hemant Kabra, founder and managing director at BGauss Auto, said at the launch event in Mumbai on Tuesday. “RUV 350 stands as a symbol of progress and a significant step towards a cleaner, greener future. We believe this vehicle will set new benchmarks in the electric two-wheeler market.”

According to Kabra, the RUV 350—short for Rider Utility Vehicle—is BGauss’s ticket to break into the top-five of India’s electric-wheeler industry.

“By 2032–34, India’s two-wheeler industry will flip in favour of scooters, a significant chunk of which will be electrified. With the RUV 350, we want to corner about a quarter of that market,” Kabra told NDTV Profit on the sidelines of the launch event.

BGauss Electric, currently India’s eighth-largest electric two-wheeler maker, has a market share of 4% and is present in 100 districts. In the four years since inception, the company has sold a little over 40,000 units of BG C12—its only product on offer until now. With the RUV 350, the RR Group company is eyeing a pan-India presence.

To be sure, the RUV 350 drops into a crowded arena of electric scooters. At least 15 EV makers—legacy automakers and upstarts alike—are looking to grab a slice of the ever-growing pie that is India’s electric two-wheeler industry.

In the fiscal-ended March, electric two-wheeler sales rose 33.3% year-on-year to nearly a million units, according to data on the government’s VAHAN portal. Ola Electric Mobility Pvt. accounted for nearly a third of the volume.

Electric two-wheelers now account for 5% of the overall two-wheeler market—a level seen as a tipping point for mass adoption. At least two market leaders, Ola Electric and Ather Energy Ltd., have lined up initial public offerings to make the most of the transition.

Still, a lack of subsidies is hurting sales of late.

Last month, electric two-wheeler sales fell 27.15% year-on-year to 76,907 units as against 1,05,564 units in May 2023—the last month of higher subsidy under the FAME-II scheme. That was done away with altogether on March 31. Granted, the Electric Mobility Promotion Scheme brought in some volume, but that too will last only until July 31.