BREAKING NEWS: Gogoro Says Namaste To India

Taiwanese battery-swapping and electric scooter giant Gogoro has announced that it will enter the Indian market on November 3. As per Gogoro’s announcement, it will organise a session on that day where it will outline its “vision for smart energy and urban transportation and discuss how we will be working to decarbonize India’s urban mobility and last-mile sector.”

Well, what does this mean? From what we infer, there could be two approaches: Launch a B2C electric scooter for us regular folk, and bring a B2B offering for commercial purposes (deliveries, et al). As for the former, the Gogoro S1 seems to be the perfect candidate as it is equipped with everything that one can expect from a modern electric scooter. 

The Gogoro S1 is powered by a mid-mounted motor with peak power of 7.2kW and maximum torque of 27Nm at the motor. It is linked to a swappable Lithium-ion battery pack that offers a claimed range of 150km at a cruising speed of 30kmph. 

The S1 sold abroad is built with premium components including an aluminium monocoque chassis linked to a single-arm fork and a linked rear monoshock. While the India-spec e-scooter might be based on the S1, expect the actual product to be ‘Indianised’, featuring increased range, a higher top speed, as well as cost-effective components. 

On the other hand, Gogoro might look to bring its most affordable offering to India for B2B purposes, and that could likely be the Gogoro Viva. This one comes with a smaller 3kW (peak) motor churning out 85Nm at the wheel. At a cruising speed of 30km, the claimed range is 85km. Its foundations are also conventional including a telescopic fork and twin rear shock absorbers. Interestingly, Gogoro had already trademarked the name “Gogoro Viva” back in October 2019. 

• Check out Hero Vida V1 price
• Royal Enfield Gears Up For Electric Future, Focuses On Infrastructure Investment And Prototype Testing
• ZigOpinion: The Ola Electric Motorcycle Could Reignite Its Company’s Fortunes
• Best electric bikes in India

If Gogoro were to bring the Indianised S1 to India, it might be named something else considering Ola already sells the S1 range here. Perhaps the Gogoro G1? It will be a premium electric scooter possibly priced at around Rs 1.50 lakh (ex-showroom with FAME II subsidy), and will compete against feature-laden e-scooters such as the Ola S1 Pro, Ather 450X, upcoming TVS iQube ST, Hero Vida V1 Pro and Simple One. On the other hand, the Viva could be priced at around Rs 80,000 (ex-showroom, including FAME II subsidy). It will go up against the Hero Electric Nyx HX and Okinawa Dual 100 B2B e-scooters.

Considering Gogoro’s primary strength is EV infrastructure, the company could set up a vast battery-swapping network for its offerings. This will massively reduce the charging downtime for its EVs and hence go a long way in mitigating range anxiety. Hero MotoCorp’s partnership with Gogoro seems to be compartmentalised for both vehicle development and swapping infrastructure, so while Gogoro will be entering the country on its own with its own products, the battery infrastructure might be a shared resource. Such an interoperability system should save both companies from the financial burden of setting up a vast swapping network that involves the procurement and maintenance of a large number of batteries over and above the total number of vehicles on the road.

All said and done, the announcement on November 3 will be more of a feeler of sorts, giving us a glimpse of what the brand has in store for the country. Expect more details to be revealed in the following months.