Browse
Log in / Register
Share
Date: July 15, 2025
Ather Energy’s new Konarc electric scooter marks a strategic pivot for the Indian EV maker. Long known for its technology-first, premium-priced models like the 450 and Rizta, the company is now chasing a far larger slice of the mainstream electric scooter market. The Konarc is the first product built on Ather’s new EL platform, designed specifically for safety, serviceability, and scale — and, crucially, for a price segment where Ather had no presence.
Ather co-founder and CEO Tarun Mehta openly acknowledged the gap: “Rizta’s cheapest variant with AtherStack Pro is around ₹1.30 lakh. We had no product at ₹1.20 lakh.” Industry data shows that 45–55% of India’s electric scooter market falls in the ₹1 lakh–₹1.25 lakh price band — a segment that Ather previously ignored.
The Konarc arrives in two variants — S and Z — with six battery options. The 100 km range S variant starts at ₹99,999 (ex-showroom, with FAME II subsidy), while the 125 km and 161 km versions are priced at ₹1.22 lakh and ₹1.45 lakh respectively. Ather expects that once all Konarc variants roll out over the next 12 months, the company will cover 80–90% of the electric scooter market by price.
The Konarc is not just a cheaper scooter. It’s a response to a shifting customer base. Early adopters of electric scooters asked whether they were powerful and reliable enough. Today, mainstream buyers ask more conventional questions: Where do I charge? How safe is the battery? How long will it last? What about service and resale value?
Mehta noted that the company’s own research showed these questions are now the norm. “The customer we’re targeting now is different from the early adopter. They want familiarity, not just features,” he said during the launch event in Bengaluru.
Rather than stripping down the product to hit a lower price, Ather has tried to combine its core technology with attributes of a mass-market scooter. The Konarc gets a metal body, 14-inch wheels (larger than earlier Ather models), and an onboard charger. A longer wheelbase improves stability on rough roads and longer journeys.
A surprising feature for an Ather product: the Konarc includes a center stand — a common sight on conventional petrol scooters but absent from earlier Ather models. Another design choice: the headlight is mounted on the handlebar rather than the body. Mehta explained that dealer feedback two years ago, ahead of the Rizta launch, highlighted that buyers preferred a handlebar-mounted headlight. “Our dealers said, ‘Everything is good, but the headlight is not on the handlebar,’” Mehta recalled. That feedback shaped the Konarc’s design.
The Konarc is the first model on Ather’s new EL platform. The company says the platform was designed from the ground up for safety, serviceability, and volume manufacturing. Mehta demonstrated during the launch that the motor and transmission assembly can be removed in 38 seconds and reinstalled in 93 seconds — a hint at reduced service times.
The service interval is set at 10,000 km, compared to about 5,000 km for a typical scooter. The number of service checkpoints has also been reduced. Ather claims this makes the Konarc cheaper to maintain and easier to repair — a critical advantage as it competes with established petrol scooter brands like Honda, TVS, and Suzuki, which have decades of service network experience.
One of Ather’s key differentiators is its software ecosystem, AtherStack Pro. Early fears that attachment rates would drop as the company moved into lower price segments have not materialized. In Madhya Pradesh, for example, attachment rates started at 40% but eventually rose above 88% as dealerships matured. Mehta expects a similar trajectory for the Konarc.
The company is also betting on the Konarc’s margins. Mehta said Konarc is expected to generate better gross margins than the Rizta within about 18 months. That would make the Konarc a volume driver without being a margin-dilutive entry product.
The Konarc enters a crowded field. Ola Electric leads the Indian electric scooter market with its S1 series, priced between ₹85,000 and ₹1.30 lakh. Bajaj’s Chetak and TVS’s iQube also compete in similar price bands. However, Ather’s brand is perceived as more premium, with stronger software integration and a more robust charging infrastructure (the Ather Grid).
Ather’s challenge is to convert that brand perception into volume without losing its tech-forward identity. The Konarc’s design — metal body, larger wheels, center stand — is a deliberate move to make the electric scooter feel less “futuristic” and more “familiar” to a mainstream buyer.
Mehta declined to set a specific first-year sales target for the Konarc, saying the immediate priority is ramping up production. “Demand currently exceeds what we can produce,” he said. Ather’s current manufacturing capacity at its Hosur plant is about 120,000 units per year, but the company is scaling up.
The Konarc also signals a broader strategy: Ather is no longer just a niche, tech-first EV maker. It’s aiming to be a mainstream player. The EL platform is designed to spawn multiple products across price points, allowing Ather to expand its portfolio without reinventing the architecture each time.
Industry analyst Ravi Bhatia of JATO Dynamics commented: “Ather’s move to the ₹1–1.25 lakh segment is smart. That’s where the volumes are. But the company must ensure it doesn’t dilute its premium brand equity. The Konarc seems to strike a balance — offering familiar features while retaining Ather’s software advantage.”
The Konarc is Ather’s most ambitious bet yet. It’s not just another model; it’s the cornerstone of a strategy to capture a much larger share of India’s electric scooter market. By combining mainstream design cues with its proven technology stack, Ather hopes to win over the skeptical, price-sensitive buyer who has so far stuck with petrol. Whether the Konarc succeeds will depend on production ramp-up, service network expansion, and the company’s ability to maintain its premium feel at a lower price point.
