Taking a leaf from JSW MG Motor, which first rolled out the battery-as-a-service (BaaS) model for the Comet, ZS EV and Windsor cars, electric two-wheeler makers Ather Energy and Hero MotoCorp have now leaned into the same strategy and are witnessing a similar effect — sharper demand and rising sales. With upfront prices dropping and ownership becoming more flexible, the model has nudged many fence-sitters toward the EV lane, improving monthly sales volumes for both brands over the past six months.
At its core, BaaS works by separating the vehicle from its most expensive component. Instead of buying the scooter with the battery bundled in, a customer pays for the two-wheeler chassis at a far lower price and signs up for a monthly battery plan. It softens the initial financial hit, a key reason many potential buyers hesitate to switch to electric.
“The battery-as-a-service model has the potential to significantly reduce the overall cost of owning an electric two-wheeler,” Poonam Upadhyay, director, Crisil Ratings, told Fe. “By separating the battery from the vehicle, users can avoid the upfront cost of the battery, which forms about 35–40% of the vehicle’s total cost,” she said.
Ather introduced BaaS in August, cutting the starting price of its family-focused Rizta scooter to Rs 75,999 and its 450 Series to Rs 84,341 (ex-showroom Lucknow). Under this arrangement, buyers can pick a battery subscription starting from Rs 1 per kilometre as part of a 48-month plan, with a minimum usage threshold of 1,000 km per month. Alongside, Ather expanded its assured buyback programme, under which customers can receive up to 60% of the scooter’s value after three years.
The drop in upfront cost has had a visible effect. Without BaaS, the 450 lineup ranges from Rs 1,30,999 to Rs 1,84,999 for the Apex variant, while the Rizta starts at Rs 1,04,999. Since introducing the subscription model, Ather has accelerated its monthly sales, climbing from 13,332 units in April to 28,177 units in October, making it the country’s third-largest EV scooter brand. Much of this momentum has been aided by the wider appeal of the Rizta, positioned as a family scooter in a space traditionally dominated by petrol models.
Hero MotoCorp’s electric arm Vida has followed a similar path. The company launched its VX2 range with a BaaS option in July, pricing the Vida VX2 Go at Rs 44,990 under the subscription model and Rs 73,840 with the battery purchase. The VX2 Plus is listed at Rs 57,990 under BaaS and Rs 82,790 with the battery included. Since introducing this choice, Vida’s monthly sales have nearly tripled — from about 5,000 units in April to 15,968 units in October.
Market leaders like TVS Motor, Bajaj Auto and Ola Electric do not currently offer this model. Ola Electric’s chairman and managing director Bhavish Aggarwal recently described BaaS as more of a financing structure than a sales catalyst, noting that most customers already choose vehicle loans. Ola continues to prioritise in-house battery development and extended range.
Industry analysts, however, believe BaaS gives electric mobility a wider entry gate, especially for price-sensitive individual buyers and commercial fleets with high daily usage. Mahindra Last Mile Mobility, for instance, already uses the model for electric three- and four-wheelers aimed at commercial operators.
JSW MG Motor’s early experiment in passenger cars has also shown that subscription-led sales can scale. BaaS accounts for 15–20% of the brand’s EV sales, according to Director Parth Jindal. Tata Passenger Electric Mobility, the market leader in electric cars, has so far opted not to adopt the model.
