Gurgaon-based Sona Comstar, the Tier 1 supplier of bevel gears and the world’s largest component supplier of precision forged gears for differentials used in conventional commercial vehicles, is now making a foray into the electric vehicle (EV) segment.

The company is strengthening its electrification drive and developing EV components ranging from BLDC (brushless DC) motors and controllers for electric two- and three-wheelers, as well as belt starter generators (BSGs) for hybrid passenger cars.

This is in addition to the high-torque differential assemblies that it is already supplying to one of the largest EV makers in the world since 2018, as well as its future plans of developing high-voltage traction motors and controllers for electric cars.

Now, in its latest business move, Sona Comstar has revealed that it will supply the BLDC motor as well as its controller to Gurgaon-based electric vehicle start-up Revolt Motors, which launched its RV 300 and RV 400 electric motorcycles in India in August last year.

In a recent interview with Autocar Professional, Vivek Vikram Singh, MD and Group CEO, Sona Comstar, said, “We are currently working on business development pursuits for these products with several Indian and global OEMs and have won a few orders as well. One of them is Revolt Motors, for which we will be the strategic supplier for BLDC belt-drive motor and controller for their two-wheeler applications.”

Sona Comstar helps Revolt enhance localisation
While the Revolt RV 300 comes with a 1.5kW hub motor and the RV 400 gets a more powerful, frame-mounted 3kW belt-drive motor, Sona Comstar is developing both types of electric motors to be offered in its EV product portfolio. It could be speculated that Revolt Motors apparently sources the motor from China in the present day and would want to shift to local supply on its existing motorcycle as well as upcoming products in the market by April 2021.

With indigenous development and supply, Revolt Motors would benefit from the government’s phased manufacturing programme (PMP) that aims to give impetus to local development of EV components by increasing the basic customs duty on imports of AC or DC motors and controllers from the currently set zero percent to 15 percent by April next year. 

On the other hand, Sona Comstar has high-set ambitions. According to Singh, “We intend to climb up the value chain of electric vehicle components and become one of the few fully-integrated electric drive unit makers in the world.”

The company’s range of EV products is set to include EV differential assemblies, BSG, BLDC motors (both drive motor and hub-wheel motor), motor controllers, and e-axles (both rigid and independent suspension type).

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