5 days ago
India's Ather Energy posts narrower quarterly loss, flags rare earth headwinds
Aug 4 (Reuters) - Indian e-scooter maker Ather Energy ( opens new tab reported a narrower first-quarter loss on Monday on higher demand, and said it expects a week of "potential business impact" only in the second quarter due to China's rare-earth magnet export ban.
Ather expects around a week's worth of a supply gap to dealers due to China's ban but aims to manage the impact with existing inventory, CEO Tarun Mehta said in post-earnings call.
The company is also exploring alternatives, including a shift to more widely available light rare earth magnets, which remain unrestricted, he added.
China, which supplies around 90% of the world's rare earth magnets, imposed the export ban in April.
Last week major Indian carmakers Mahindra ( opens new tab, Hyundai India ( opens new tab shrugged off medium-term issues from the export ban, with Mahindra saying it was using alternatives such as light rare-earths and ferrites.
Ather Energy, which makes the popular "Rizta" e-scooter, said its losses narrowed to 1.78 billion rupees ($20.3 million) in the quarter ended June 30 from 1.83 billion rupees a year ago, helped by sales that grew nearly two-fold to 46,078 units.
Backed by Hero MotoCorp ( opens new tab, Ather entered India's electric vehicle market in 2018 as an early mover, but has since lost ground to rivals such as Ola Electric ( opens new tab and legacy players with stronger finances and a broader reach.
Its revenue surged 78.8% on-year to 6.45 billion rupees, but rising material costs pushed overall expenses 54.4% higher.
Its adjusted gross margin rose to 23% from 19% a year ago, driven by non-vehicle revenue such as warranty programs, software and accessories such as its "Halo" helmets.
Ather's shares rose as much as 19.4% to a record high of 414.65 rupees on Monday after its quarterly results and closed 14% higher.
($1 = 87.6320 Indian rupees)
