Ola Electric registers Rs 2,782 crore revenue in FY23, losses down 43%

Initial public offering (IPO)-bound Ola Electric Mobility Business said it registered strong growth as total revenue has gone up by 510 per cent to Rs2,782 crore in FY23 from Rs456 crore in FY22.

Total revenue includes revenue from operations and other income.

The earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) profit/loss for FY23 improved from 157 per cent in FY22 to 43 per cent in FY23. However, the SoftBank-backed company didn’t reveal the loss figure.

But Ola Electric’s net loss reportedly doubled to about Rs1,472 crore in FY23 from Rs784.1 crore in the previous financial year, as expenses surged significantly, according to media reports.

The company reported an EBITDA loss of Rs1,318 crore as its total expenses jumped to Rs3,383 crore compared to Rs1,240 crore in FY22.

The Bhavish Aggarwal-led company said that it has set in motion a few initiatives for strong growth and profitability in the near future. This includes a new product portfolio. Ola recently expanded its S1 portfolio to five scooters with its Generation 2 platform.

The company currently sells S1 Pro (2nd Generation), S1 Air and S1 X in three variants — S1 X+, S1 X (3kWh), and S1 X (2kWh).

The other focus areas are sales and service network expansion.

The company has expanded its direct-to-consumer (D2C) omnichannel distribution network in FY23. As of October 31, 2023, the company has 935 experience centres and 392 service centres.

Ola is also strengthening its research and development (R&D) operations.

It has operationalised and strengthened R&D facilities in India and the UK, focused on designing and developing core EV components and new EV products.

Ola also commenced operations at its Battery Innovation Centre (BIC) in Bengaluru, in August 2023. The unit will be developing cell and battery technology and manufacturing processes for its forthcoming cell manufacturing operations at the Ola Gigafactory.

In November, Ola Electric saw the highest monthly registrations (30,000) for its electric scooters, helped by strong festival demand.

The company cited state-run VAHAN portal to say it had a month-on-month (M-o-M) growth of 30 per cent in registrations and year-on-year (Y-o-Y) growth of 82 per cent.

It claims to have dominated the electric scooter market with a 35 per cent share in November. The firm competes with Ather Energy, Okinawa Autotech, Ampere EV by Greaves, Hero Electric and TVS Motor Company.

Ola Electric has transformed itself into a public company as it gears up for its IPO in the next few weeks.

This involves undertaking a corporate restructuring, which will convert it into a public company, regulatory filings showed.

The IPO may be in the range of $800 million-$1 billion, according to the sources.

The company is preparing to file a Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) before December 20, according to the sources.

It recently secured about Rs3,200 crore in funding as part of its equity and debt round. This funding was obtained from Temasek-led marquee investors and project debt from State Bank of India.

The funding round, which includes equity, has raised the Bengaluru-based firm’s valuation to $5.5 billion, said the sources. Its previous valuation was $5 billion.

The funds raised are being utilised to expand Ola’s electric vehicle business and establish India’s first lithium-ion (Li-ion) cell manufacturing unit in Krishnagiri (Tamil Nadu).

These funds will also enable Ola Electric to accelerate the growth of its two-wheeler manufacturing capacity and facilitate the launch of electric motorcycles. It will be followed by electric cars, and expedite construction of the Gigafactory.

Ola Electric was selected by the government as the only Indian EV company under the production-linked incentive (PLI)-advanced chemistry cell (ACC) scheme, receiving a maximum capacity of 20 gigawatt hour (GWh). The PLI-ACC scheme will be instrumental in localising the most critical aspects of the EV value chain.

NUMBERS GAME

Total revenue is up by 510% in FY23 over FY22

Ebitda profit/(loss) for FY23 improved from FY22

Ola Electric’s net loss reportedly doubled to about Rs1,472 crore in FY23

Company reported Ebitda loss of Rs1,318 crore in FY23 as its total expenses jumped to Rs3,383 crore