Hero’s Ather buyout on the cards? Report claims Hero wants controlling stake in the electric start-up but CEO refutes…
Hero MotoCorp is chalking out ways to be a formidable player in the electric vehicle space. Apart from working on its own electric vehicles, it has a pretty high stake in Bangalore based Ather Energy which is one of the most innovative electric 2-wheeler start-ups in the country.
In a latest update, it is being speculated that India’s largest 2-wheeler maker is considering raising its stake to over 50 percent in Ather. This would be done to get a controlling stake in the company. With a near 35 percent stake, Hero is already the biggest investor in the company.
In fact, the report goes onto suggest that Hero may sell Ather’s scooters from its own dealerships situated across the country. If this happens, this could be the biggest boost to Ather’s sales as it will get the backing of the country’s largest dealership network.
On the other hand, Tarun Mehta, Co-founder and CEO of Ather Energy has refuted this claim. On Twitter, to a tweet claiming Hero’s takeover of Ather, Tarun said “NOPE”.
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— Tarun Mehta (@tarunsmehta) September 3, 2020
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Ather currently operates in a handful of cities but has plans to be present in eight new cities by 2021 which would directly enhance its sales. The company also has plans to venture in the electric motorcycle space but that would come later.
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It will be interesting to see how things pan out between Hero and Ather in the coming days. We believe Ather’s current team brings in a fresh zeal to this business and it would be beneficial for the brand if it continues to operate independently.
Source – CNBC TV18
