Magenta acquires India’s largest-selling e-rickshaw charger maker Axiom

Magenta, India’s homegrown integrated Electric Vehicle (EV) charging solutions company, has confirmed a significant investment into Axiom Energy Conversion, one of India’s oldest EV component manufacturers.

Last month, at the Tamil Nadu Investment Conclave, Magenta signed an MoU with the state government to set up a Rs 250 crore EV charger plant in Tamil Nadu.

Axiom Energy Conversion is a 25-year-old Hyderabad-based company promoted by M J Purohit and manufactures battery chargers and DC converters. Axiom is India’s largest selling EV charger brand in the e-Rickshaw segment, with an existing manufacturing capacity of 650,000 charger units per annum. Currently, Axiom customers include a number of leading EV OEMs and retailers.

With the Magenta Axiom investment and partnership, plans are afoot to develop a greenfield manufacturing setup dedicated to EV powertrain components, including chargers, convertors, motor controllers and drivetrain components.

The majority stake acquisition of Axiom enables Magenta to have a large in-house manufacturing facility for its EV charging equipment. With this acquisition, Magenta Axiom emerges as one of the most integrated EV charging players with business verticals spanning from charger manufacturing to charging technology, charging as a service and last mile electric delivery. Future expansion plans include deploying these integrated EV solutions across the country.

Speaking about the investment in Axiom, Maxson Lewis, MD, Magenta, said: “We are amazed at a depth of knowledge and manufacturing capability in AC-DC conversion that Axiom has developed. It was only recently that our joint discussion turned into an investment and partnership. Magenta has believed in building an end-to-end platform solution for EV charging, and this new state-of-the-art facility will contribute significantly to further advancing Magenta’s move toward zero-emission electric mobility. We are glad to be supported by Axiom, which is passionate to bring about a change towards clean mobility.”

This acquisition is significant for Magenta and the EV industry in India as it is aimed at developing a comprehensive e-mobility ecosystem. It is expected to further broaden the company’s e-mobility portfolio with Magenta and its associated brands ‘ChargeGrid’ and ‘EVET’.

Indian American philanthropist and serial entrepreneur, Dr Kiran Patel, who has backed Magenta, said: “My wife and I have always believed in building a legacy by partnering with companies who are passionate about making this planet better for the next generation. With Magenta and now Axiom, I felt we have brought together a formidable team who are as passionate as I am to bring about a difference. I have a vision for Magenta which goes beyond the Indian sub-continent.”

M J Purohit, MD of Axiom said, “Axiom is committed to developing new and robust EV components and charging solutions. Our EV components are designed to be simple, small and reliable while being imbibed with the latest tech. We intend to become the largest standalone component supplier for chargers, DC- DC converters and motor drives in the country. With the association of Magenta, we are very well placed to capture this burgeoning market space. We have jointly lined up a robust portfolio of EV components and are working on developing these new age smart and affordable EV solutions.”

Seed funded by HPCL in 2018 and incubated by Shell in 2019, Magenta is also backed by the Microsoft Startup Program further to strengthen its advanced technology platform for electric Mobility. In 2020, Magenta had raised pre-series funding from JAN (JITO Angel Network) and LetsVenture. Magenta has closed its Series A funding by serial entrepreneur, Dr. Kiran Patel.