Bajaj wants to “do a Tesla” in two-wheel space

The president of Indian firm Baja Auto, Rajiv Bajaj (pictured), has revealed the firm's working on a new all-electric brand of two-wheeled vehicles which he’s dubbed 'Urbanite'.

Bajaj let the news slip in an interview with Livemint, the online arm of one of India’s largest financial and business newspapers, saying the range will “aim to do a Tesla in the electric two-wheeler space,” he told the website. “I have said time and again that I don’t want to be in a volume business and make another 100cc scooter and compete in a red ocean with 10 others.”

The news comes off the back of the announcement last month that the Indian firm has entered into a partnership with British marque Triumph, and while Bajaj made no suggestion the tie-up would have anything to do with the Urbanite range, he did expand on his future plans in association with Triumph.

According to Rajiv Bajaj, the first priority of the Bajaj-Triumph alliance is to create a mid-capacity motorcycle to take on its domestic rival Royal Enfield. According to reports, sales of Royal Enfield motorcycles in India rose by a considerable 30 per cent in 2016 compared to the year previous.

The Indian firm moved a whopping 651,107 motorcycles in India in the 12-month period and Bajaj wants a slice of the mid-capacity pie.

The firm’s alliance with Austrian brand KTM looks after the sportsbike segment, and the company already caters very well to the country’s entry-level sector with its own range of two- and three-wheelers, but Triumph’s history, know-how and appropriate capacity has the ability to hit the old and increasingly successful brand right where it hurts.

Add to that a newly launched brand of aspirational electric-powered motorcycles and Bajaj Auto, like its compatriot Royal Enfield, could be a brand to watch in coming years.