1. Wings EV Robin microcar receives approval from ARAI.

Wings EV’s microcar Robin has received necessary approvals from ARAI. Robin has now been classified as an L7 quadricycle, adhering to European standards. The EV comes with a 5.6 kWh LFP battery. It is ideal for city driving, offers a claimed range of 90 km, can accelerate from 0-40 km/hr in 5 seconds and reach a top speed of 60 km/hr. The vehicle’s charging port is at the rear. It takes 5 hours to fully charge using a standard 16A plug.

After 5 years of R&D and 7 pre-production prototypes, Robin finally cleared all L7 homologation tests, including crash tests. Production will take place in Indore (Madhya Pradesh). The company has already launched its website for pre-orders. Deliveries will begin next year.

The Wings EV Robin will be available in 3 variants: e, s & x. The base model has been priced at Rs 2 lakh. It won’t have air conditioning and will offer a range of 60 km. The mid-variant will come with a blower and offer a range of 90 km. It is priced at Rs 2.5 lakh. The top model will come with air-conditioning, offer a range of 90 km and is priced at Rs 3 lakh.

2. Indian EV charging company ThunderPlus ties-up with Singapore-based Oyika.

ThunderPlus, the EV charging brand of Trinity Cleantech, has joined hands with Oyika, a Singapore-based battery swapping company. The collaboration is expected to establish the Indian company’s presence in the South East Asian market. As per the agreement, Thunder Plus will introduce its complete portfolio of EV charging solutions, including its fast-chargers for electric two & three-wheelers, into Oyika’s battery swapping infrastructure throughout South East Asia.

The partnership is a vital step for ThunderPlus as the company attempts to establish a presence in countries like Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia & Singapore. The collaboration also allows the exchange of technological expertise between the two companies. Along with the announcement of this tie-up, ThunderPlus also showcased the company’s 3.3 kW AC charger, the Thunder Lite. The charger is compatible with electric two & three-wheelers, is IP67 compliant and can transform any wall or pole into an EV charging station.

3. Tata Motors unveils the Curvv SUV coupe.

Tata Motors has finally unveiled the new Curvv SUV coupe. The Curvv will come in electric, petrol & diesel powertrains. The company will formally launch the car and reveal its prices on 7 August.

The Tata Curvv is India’s first SUV coupe. It is expected to be initially launched with an electric powertrain, followed by the ICE versions (reported to be a 1.2-litre petrol & 1.5-litre diesel engine). The Curvv will also come in 2 new colour options: Virtual Sunrise (exclusively for the Curvv.ev) and Gold Essence (exclusively for the petrol/diesel variant).

The Curvv is based on the Nexon. The front of the two cars look very similar. But the Curvv EV will come with a nose-mounted charging flap similar to the Punch EV.

4. Mercedes & Starbucks announce a partnership to set-up EV charging stations in the US.

Mercedes-Benz & Starbucks are coming together to install rapid EV charging stations at around 100 Starbucks locations in the United States. In the first phase, superfast EV chargers will be installed at Starbucks outlets along the country’s west coast. In the meantime, Starbucks outlets will be shortlisted on the east coast for the next phase.

Mercedes will install Alpitronic Hypercharger 400 at Starbucks locations. These advanced chargers come with NACS & CCS cables, rated up to 400 kW, and they are compatible with 800V battery architecture.

Before Mercedes, Starbucks had collaborated with Volvo to install 15 charging stations along highways that connect Seattle & Denver.

5. Online rental platform Rentkar to deploy 1000 electric scooters.

Online rental platform Rentkar plans to deploy 1,000 electric scooters. Rentkar is now renting electric scooters starting at just Rs 3990 per month. The startup recently posted on Instagram and received around 25 bookings within 2 hours.

Encouraged by this response, the company is now exploring partnerships with NBFCs to deploy 1000 electric scooters. Pre-bookings are open.

For complete EV charging solutions, explore the Kazam website.