Stark Future Receives €50 Million Investment From Eicher Motors
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Eicher Motors, an Indian automotive group worth $1.6 billion/₹12,449 crore, has announced plans to further its efforts in the electric motorcycle category through a partnership with Stark Future, the Spanish brand building the VARG motocross bike. The €50 million/$52 million investment will give Eicher Motors a 10.35% equity stake in Stark Future and a seat on its Board of Directors, with both groups benefiting from the other’s resources.
The Eicher Motors portfolio includes ownership of Royal Enfield, the oldest motorcycle brand in continuous production and leader in the 250cc-750cc mid-weight category, and a joint venture with Volvo named VEVC that builds commercial vehicles and buses under their respective names. The company has manufacturing facilities in Chennai and Pithampur, India, as well as Thailand, Argentina, Colombia, and Brazil.
Stark Future will continue to build the electric VARG motocross bike in its recently finished Spanish factory. The company has been open about challenges that have occurred through production and demand, but the first pre-orders are to be delivered in 2023.
What does Eicher Motors see in Stark Future? Industry-leading and patented technology in electric power, something that will be useful in all forms of transportation as demand for EV options increases.
Siddhartha Lal, majority owner and Managing Director/CEO of Eicher Motors
“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,” said Siddhartha Lal, the majority owner and Managing Director/CEO of Eicher Motors. “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.”
Royal Enfield will extend its manufacturing expertise and own electric technology with Stark Future as the upstart brand increases production. “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 industrialisation process,” said B Govindarajan, CEO of Royal Enfield. “While they are thought leaders in EV technology, particularly in light-weight 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.”
Anton Wass, Founder and CEO of Stark Future
An investment of this sort was a key part of Stark Future’s initial plan and comes just as the OEM prepares for the consumer release of its first bike, a global dealer network, and racing aspirations. “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,” said Anton Wass, Founder and CEO of Stark Future.
“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,” he continued. “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.”
Below is the full press release, as well as images of production plants for Royal Enfield and Stark Future.
EICHER MOTORS LTD., PARENT COMPANY OF ROYAL ENFIELD, ANNOUNCES STRATEGIC INVESTMENT IN SPANISH ELECTRIC MOBILITY COMPANY, STARK FUTURE S.L.
Eicher Motors Ltd., leading Indian multinational automobile company, and parent company of Royal Enfield, a global leader in the mid-weight 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 an approximate 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.
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 Anton and 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 industrialisation process. While they are thought leaders in EV technology, particularly in light-weight 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 a 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 & design. Stark Future has a 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 midweight segment. Royal Enfield has been building several thoughts and approaches towards design and development and also towards bringing in the right talent and resources.
Stark Future is a multinational company, established in 2020 with Swedish roots, located on the fringes of Barcelona. Making the most of Catalunya’s reputation as the European capital of motorcycling, Stark Future was able to construct a dedicated, passionate, and knowledgeable team from the elite of both the motorcycle and power electronics industries, in order to build the first electric motorcycle to be the performance leader within its category, Motocross. Stark Future rapidly started work on the first flagship model of an ambitious range of next-generation electric motorcycles, the Stark VARG, a strong definition of the company’s values, it is the lightest, most powerful motocross bike in the world. The demands and requirements of motocross mean the Stark VARG has to be the most advanced, most durable, versatile and fun offer in the category, all the while paying full respect to the environment and conditions in which the bike is being used. Highly advanced technology has been dutifully evolved at the firm’s factory, where robotic assembly lines will produce the Stark VARG and forthcoming models.
Stark Future was started to lead the motorcycle industry into sustainability, by reducing plastic and CO2 pollution and this will be achieved by building sustainable products, utilizing the highest-grade materials, components, and engineering that are superior to traditional technology in terms of Performance, Emotion and Design.
Stark means ‘strong’ in Swedish: an attribute also symbolized by the Stark Future 24K gold ring, an icon representing a desire to be a leader, with a full circle mentality, sustainability, and striving for perfection.
Eicher Motors Limited (EML) (Bloomberg: EIM IN Reuters: EICH.NS) is the listed parent of Royal Enfield, global leader in the middleweight motorcycles segment (250cc – 750cc). The world’s oldest motorcycle brand in continuous production, Royal Enfield has made its distinctive motorcycles since 1901. Focussed on bringing back simple, yet engaging and accessible motorcycling, Royal Enfield operates in India and over 60+ countries around the world. With modern development facilities in Leicestershire, UK, and Chennai, India, Royal Enfield makes its motorcycles in Tamil Nadu for the world. In addition to motorcycles, EML has a joint venture with Sweden’s AB Volvo – VE Commercial Vehicles Limited (VECV) – which is driving modernization in India’s commercial vehicle space, and in other developing countries. VECV includes the complete range of Eicher branded trucks and buses, Volvo trucks in India, engine manufacturing and exports for Volvo Group, non-automotive engines, and Eicher component business. Its integrated manufacturing plant in Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh is also the global hub for medium-duty 5 and 8-liter engines for Volvo Group. In 2020, VECV signed definitive agreements to integrate Volvo Buses India into VECV including the manufacture, assembly, distribution, and sale of Volvo Buses in India.
For FY ’22, Eicher Motors Ltd recorded a total income of INR 10,298 crores which is approximately USD 1.34 billion. In addition, VECV reported a total revenue of INR 12,724 crores in FY ’22 which is approximately USD 1.64 billion; this revenue is not consolidated in EML’s income. EML is listed on the Bombay and National Stock Exchanges. As of April 1st, 2016, Eicher Motors Limited became a part of the Nifty 50 Index.
