Auto rickshaws play an important role in India, which is densely populated with lower car ownership rates. Although many Indian auto ricks are electric, lead-acid batteries are required to replace them every six to eleven months.
Power Global, a startup that has been around for two years, is looking to disrupt the auto-rickshaw market. They offer a retrofit kit to convert diesel-powered vehicles to electric, and a swappable battery pack that can be used to replace the older lead-acid batteries with lithium-ion.
Porter Harris, an engineer who previously designed the batteries for SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft, founded Power Global. Porter Harris was also the chief battery engineer for Faraday Future, an EV startup. He estimates that Power Global is currently 95% self-funded, thanks to the SpaceX stock sale.
In a recent interview, he said that he has been studying the Indian market for five years. According to some market research firms, India's electric rickshaw market will reach $1.3 billion by 2025. It's also very sad: according to IQAir, India accounted for 15 of the 20 most polluted places in the world last year. Many of these emissions can be attributed to transportation.
Harris stated that the retrofit kit will fit more than 90% of all current models. The eZee swappable batteries Power Global also offers two products for electric or diesel-powered rickshaws. This allows Harris to target almost the entire auto-rickshaw market.
Harris claims that the company has 48 dealers who are ready to sell its products. This is largely due to Pankaj Dubey, co-founder of Power Global, having worked with Indian dealerships during his time with Hero Motors and Yamaha. This is a huge benefit as Power Globals plans are dependent on a strong dealer network that can help drivers and get them signed up for the swappable batteries subscription model.
Drivers will be able to subscribe to the monthly energy-as-a service model via Power Globals' eZee swappable battery subscription. This will provide the main source of revenue.
Harris stated that it is a completely different business model. It is a completely new business model. We cannot translate petrol or other gas solutions into electric. We believe there should be a lot more kiosks and fewer [battery] module locations.
The company plans to launch in the National Capital Region of New Delhi. It also wants to plan to have a kiosk at every three kilometers. Drivers will have the option of taking the battery home to charge with a Power Global charger.
The company is also working on an app for drivers that will show them stats such as how many miles they've driven that day, remaining battery life, and where the nearest swapping station is.
Power Global anticipates that its batteries will last between four and five years to five years. Once the batteries are removed from the eZee ecosystem, the company intends to use them for stationary energy storage. Harris stated that there are plans for the batteries to be connected to small solar panels in order to supply energy to rural areas. Harris stated that the battery will be recycled once it has exhausted its useful life.
The company plans to release the eZee battery product next quarter, and then the retrofit kits. It has established a battery manufacturing plant in Greater Noida (India) that will produce approximately a gigawatt-hour, equivalent to about 10,000 Model S packs. It will be the country's largest lithium-ion battery manufacturer. Power Global hopes to have at least 10,000 vehicles using the eZee swappable platform by 2022.
Harris stated that Power Global is currently in discussions with U.S.-based companies about the eZee product. However, the main focus of the project is still further east. Is there a better solution for the top 10%? We don't. Let's not forget the 90% that isn't in our control and make a real difference.
