Biliti to set up electric three-wheeler factory

California-based Biliti Electric (Biliti), which has tied up with Hyderabad-based Gayam Motor Works to sell made-in-India electric three-wheelers in the US has announced its intention to setup a 240,000 unit per annum electric three-wheeler factory in Telangana.

The new plant is expected to be set-up with an investment of $150 million (Rs 1,136 crore) and is likely to create over 3,000 jobs in 

According to the company, it will be the largest facility for electric three-wheelers in the country and it says this will align with Telangana's policy to become a global hub for electric vehicle and energy storage manufacturing. According to the company the facility will be built in two phases over an area of 200 acres. The phase I will see production setup of over 13.5 acres for a manufacturing capacity of 18,000 vehicles per year, which will be operational in early 2023. The larger facility spread across 200 acres will be operational in 2024 and will be able to produce 240,000 vehicles per year. The plants will produce all of Biliti’s products including the cargo model Taskman and the passenger version Urban to serve customers in the global markets.

At present, Biliti operates through an exclusive manufacturing partnership with Gayam Motor Works (GMW) for manufacturing its three-wheelers. Biliti’s Taskman is a popular last-mile delivery vehicle which is deployed in 15 countries across the globe including Japan, USA, UK, France, Portugal, Germany, Lebanon, Uganda, Kenya, Senegal, Nepal, Bangladesh, Dubai and India, and has covered over 20 million miles. In addition to the manufacturing facility, it has assembly plants in the US, Portugal, and Kenya. Taskman is being used by Amazon, IKEA, Wasoko (Sokowatch), BigBasket (Tata), Zomato, Flipkart (Walmart) and Grofers among others.

KT Rama Rao, Industries Minister, Telangana government said, “This is the largest investment in EV manufacturing announced in the State this year, coming shortly after another California-based company Fisker announced its second headquarters in Hyderabad. The State is committed to promoting clean industries and promises to extend all benefits to the company admissible under the government’s policy.”

Rahul Gayam, CEO, Biliti said, “The Taskman has already made more than 12 million deliveries worldwide with many more to come. Our batteries and drivetrain are compact and modular in design, allowing them to have wider applications in auto, marine, warehousing, and backup power sectors enabling the build out of an EV ecosystem.”

Luxembourg based GEM Global Yield has committed $400 million (Rs 3,029 crore) to Biliti in the form of a Share Subscription Facility, well-positioning it to accelerate growth, execute new strategic initiatives, acquire cutting edge technology players, and expand its manufacturing base.