IPO-bound Ather Energy sells record 20,000 EV scooters in October amid rival Ola's sales dip

Ather Energy said on Thursday it has achieved its highest-ever monthly dispatches in October, shipping more than 20,000 electric scooters across India, spurred by the recent launch of its family scooter, Rizta, which contributed approximately 60-70% of the month’s volume.

The company reported retail sales of 20,000 scooters as of October 30, marking significant growth from September's 12,828 units and pushing Ather’s national market share up to 14.3% in September from 7.9% in July.

Ather’s growth comes amid a slowdown for rival Ola Electric, which saw sales fall 11% month-on-month in September to 23,965 units, impacted by concerns over after-sales service. India's electric two-wheeler market has seen robust demand, with the sector posting about 70% year-on-year growth in October.

Ather, backed by Hero MotoCorp, also recently filed for a ₹4,500 crore ($540 million) initial public offering (IPO) to support expansion efforts. Ather IPO will include a fresh equity share issue and an Offer for Share (OFS) of up to 2.2 crore shares (10.7% of total shares).

Founded in 2013 by Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain, Ather Energy has focused on fully integrated electric vehicle operations, from scooter and battery design to charging infrastructure and software solutions.

The company has 231 Experience Centres and 2,500 fast-charging stations nationwide, with plans for a new manufacturing plant in Maharashtra’s Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar district.

While the company is loss-making at the PAT level, the company has guided to become positive on the EBITDA level by FY27, expecting an improvement in sales, and better operating leverage.

The major reasons for current losses include expansion strategies, investing in product R&D talent acquisition, building and optimising the supply chain.