LML News: LML Electric plans to raise up to Rs 500 crore; first product launch in India in the second half of 2023

LML Electric plans to raise up to Rs 500 crore to fund the establishment of its own manufacturing plant and expand its business, according to the company’s Managing Director and CEO Yogesh Bhatia. The company is preparing to launch its first product in the Indian market in the second half of 2023 to mark the return of one of the popular two-wheeler brands of yesteryear, LML in an electric reincarnation.

LML Electric has already entered into a partnership with Saera Electric Auto Pvt Ltd, which had acquired American cult bike maker Harley Davidson’s manufacturing plant in Bawal, Haryana, to roll out its products in the initial phase.

“We plan to launch three products and all of them are in different categories. Our first product, an electric bicycle (bike), is coming in the first half of 2023 for the European and American market. Our second and third products will be launched in the second half of 2023 for India and other markets,” Bhatia told PTI.

The second product will be a “hyper bike” – a cross between an electric scooter and a motorcycle – while the third will be an electric scooter, he added.

Asked about the investments, Bhatia, who is also the promoter of SG Corporate Mobility which had acquired the LML brand and intellectual property last year in August, said that Rs 350 crore has been allocated for the first phase including l brand acquisition, product development and initial production.

He further said that LML Electric is “studying to raise Rs 400 crore to Rs 500 crore” to fund its future expansion plans in India and overseas, including setting up its own manufacturing unit.

While the company has signed a memorandum of understanding with Saera Electric Auto to deploy its products from the latter’s Bawal plant, Bhatia said, “In parallel, we are also considering setting up our own manufacturing facility. Over 18 months to two years, we will create our own establishment.”

In terms of production capacity, he said, “we are looking at nearly one million units per year after 2025.”

The Bawal manufacturing plant has an annual production capacity of 2.25 lakh units per year, he added.

On the sales network, Bhatia said the company’s plan is to have a footprint in every district of India with a partner within the next three to five years.

One of the popular two-wheeler brands in the 1990s, Kanpur-based LML had fallen on hard times and went bankrupt. Its liquidation was ordered by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Allahabad Bench in March 2018.

Bhatia-controlled SG Corporate Mobility, which specializes in consumer electronics and electric two-wheelers under its flagship Detel brand, acquired the LML brand and intellectual property from former family promoters last year. Singhania.