Stark has already entered the EV motorcycle market with an electric motocross bike, the VARG. Royal Enfield has now presented the challenge of creating a mid weight motorcycle that maintains the range necessary for moto travel. The development of electric motorcycles will solve two of the largest issues motorcyclists face, especially when traveling off road – noise and ecology. Many land resources are marked as non-motorized due to noise and vehicle generated pollution. Electric technology could open trails up world wide.
-That Car Lady, Lynn Beckwith
Royal Enfield has joined forces with Spain based Stark to develop a mid weight electric motorcycle. The Board of Eicher Motors Ltd. (EML) has approved an equity investment of 50 million euros, and plans for collaboration with the electric motorcycle manufacturer. Milwaukee, WI (Friday, December 29, 2022) – Eicher Motors Ltd., leading Indian multinational automobile company, and parent company of Royal Enfield, global leader in the middleweight motorcycles segment (250cc-750cc), today announced a strategic collaboration in the space of electric motorcycles with Spain-based Stark Future SL. As part of this collaboration, the Board of Directors of Eicher Motors Ltd. has today approved an investment of € 50 million for a close to 10.35% equity stake in Stark Future. With this investment, Eicher Motors Ltd., will have a seat on Stark Future’s Board, and will explore further opportunities to collaborate in the space of electric mobility. Electric motorcycle. This investment has strategic significance for both Royal Enfield and for Stark Future, as both companies are keenly invested in creating innovative and sustainable solutions in global mobility. Stark Future recently launched its first high-performance electric motocross bike, the Stark VARG, which received an exceptional response from global media, professional riders and dealers. Speaking about Stark Future and this partnership, Eicher Motors Ltd Managing Director, Siddhartha Lal says, “We love the vision, passion and focus of the amazing team at Stark Future. Leisure motorcycles do not easily lend themselves to EV technology at this stage, due to challenges like the battery range, packaging, weight and cost. This has resulted in stunted growth of this segment till now. Stark Future has been able to understand and harness the potential of EV technology by dramatically outperforming ICE offerings, without compromising on range, weight, packaging and cost. They have created an absolutely astounding motocross motorcycle – the Stark VARG as their entry into the EV world. We believe that Stark Future has the highest potential for real breakout growth in the EV leisure space with this model, and the potential to use this strong base to extend into other contiguous segments and beyond.” At the helm of affairs at Royal Enfield, B Govindarajan, CEO of the company, feels this is a perfectly symbiotic partnership, and says, “We are very excited to closely collaborate with Stark Future who are as focused as we are on challenging norms, pushing the boundaries and building uniquely differentiated offerings for riders. In addition to the sheer potential of Stark Future, we see immense synergies in this partnership. While they are scaling up and planning their market entry soon, we will support Stark in the industrialization process. While they are thought leaders in EV technology, particularly in lightweight components and innovative solutions, we at Royal Enfield will draw on these capabilities for developing our EV platforms and will also plan to share some EV platforms in the future.” Also speaking about this partnership, Stark Future Founder and CEO, Anton Wass says, “We aimed to challenge and inspire the motorcycle industry with the creation of the Stark VARG and by bringing our electric technology from the drawing board to reality. To now partner with one of the very first motorcycle brands in history and be part of their journey towards sustainability is a huge inspiration for us at Stark. We have now worked closely with Sid, Govind and team for a few months, and have been deeply impressed by what they have created in the past 25 years, as well as the mindset and focus to continue to build and develop Royal Enfield into the future of sustainable motorcycling. With the Stark VARG we believe we have a launch model that will reset benchmarks, so to know that the bike’s technical basis will spread much further and filter into more machinery and products is another source of pride for us. It has been a short, intense and incredible journey for us so far but our link with Royal Enfield and what lies in store in the coming years are brilliant signs for the future.” Stark Future is a European electric motorcycle manufacturer with specific focus in the area of performance electric motorcycles. With a vision to inspire the motorcycle industry towards sustainable mobility, Stark Future endeavors to build sustainable products that are superior to traditional technology in performance, emotion and design. Stark Future has deep understanding in the EV space and connected technology, with several patents on its newly developed Stark VARG. Royal Enfield has made huge strides on its EV journey over the last few years. The company’s R&D programs have included a major focus on sustainable mobility technologies, and there are several ideas in advanced stages of testing. The company has been aggressively building a sharp and insightful understanding of the EV space with an intention to create uniquely differentiated electric motorcycles with strong Royal Enfield DNA, in the middleweight segment. Royal Enfield has been building several thoughts and approaches towards design and development and also towards bringing in the right talent and resources. |
| About Royal EnfieldThe oldest motorcycle company in continuous production in the world, Royal Enfield made its first motorcycle in 1901. A division of Eicher Motors Limited, Royal Enfield has created the midsize motorcycle segment in India with its unique and distinctive modern classic motorcycles. With its manufacturing base in Chennai, India, Royal Enfield has been able to grow its production rapidly against a surge in demand for its motorcycles. A division of Eicher Motors Limited, Royal Enfield operates through more than 2100 stores across all major cities and towns in India and through nearly 850 stores in more than 60 countries around the globe. Royal Enfield also has two world-class technical centers, in Bruntingthorpe, UK, and in Chennai, India. The company’s two state-of-the-art production facilities are located at Oragadam and Vallam Vadagal, near Chennai. Across the world, Royal Enfield has four modern CKD assembly facilities in Brazil, Thailand, Argentina and Colombia. With more than 37% CAGR for the last five years and sales in international markets up 108% in 2021-22, Royal Enfield is the leader in the global midsize motorcycle market. Royal Enfield North America (RENA) is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and is developing a growing network of more than 150 dealers in North America, including the contiguous U.S. and Canada. RENA currently offers the all-new Scram 411, Classic 350, Meteor 350, Himalayan and the 650 Twins (INT650 and Continental GT 650) motorcycles, along with a range of Genuine Motorcycle Accessories and apparel. |
