TVS Motor and BMW Motorrad commence production of first electric bike 'CE 02' at TN plant
Two and three-wheeler major TVS Motor company in collaboration with BMW Motorrad, the motorcycle division of German automaker BMW Group, began production of its first electric two-wheeler CE 02 at the manufacturing facility here on Friday.
The factory located about 70 kms from Bengaluru, was engaged in the production of vehicles co-developed by the two auto companies.On the occasion, the companies rolled out the one lakh fifty thousandth unit of the popular 310cc motorcycle from the plant.
TVS Motor and BMW Motorrad jointly sell BMW G 310R, BMW 310 GS, BMW G310RR along with TVS Apache RR310 and the recently launched TVS Apache RTR 310.
TVS Motor company, Director and CEO KN Radhakrishnan and BMW Motorrad Head Dr Markus Schram were present at the factory.The CE 02 electric two-wheeler would be initially sold in Europe and later retailed in India, the company officials said. Radhakrishnan said its a special day witnessing the rollout of 1,50,000th unit and the launch of CE 02.
"I think this is something unique. It is a long-standing relationship between the two companies who have same quality engineering prowess with BMW is a global aspirated brand while TVS is more than one hundred years old," he told reporters.
It is a testament of common values, basic philosophy of the common group, customer centric approach and the focus is on delivering global aspirational products, he said. The product is designed by BMW and codeveloped by TVS Motor.
Radhakrishnan recalled that the company rolled out 1,00,000 th vehicle in December 2021 while it took two years to reach 1.50 lakh unit today.
According to him, TVS Motor accounts for 12 per cent of the motorcycle sales of the BMW Group globally.
"This is the journey of CE 02 and the relationship (between the two companies) will continue for many more years on a strong friendship basis." "Through our collaborative efforts we have achieved five extraordinary products in the 310cc series, including the recent Apache RTR 310. These products are now embraced by enthusiasts in over 100 markets globally," he said.
"Taking our relationship to the next level we have started the production of our firstly jointly designed, developed and industrialised EV together, the BMW CE 02, at Hosur plant today," Radhakrishnan said.
BMW Motorrad Head Dr Markus Schramm said, "it is an extra ordinary success story and the strong collaboration (between the two companies) has led to the launch of great products".
Pointing to the launch of 150,000 vehicles from the Hosur plant, Schramm said it is a strong number and expressed confidence that it would not take another two years to reach 200,000 production unit.
"We want to bring more electric models in 18-24 months", he said and added that the target customers for CE 02 product will be youngsters in the European market.
To a query he said the company conceptualised the CE 02 model four years ago and it was first showcased globally in July 2023.
Schramm said the CE 02 bike would be initially sold in European markets at 8,500 euros from next April 2024 and would be launched later in India.
"The extension and expansion of this partnership towards future technologies and sustainable mobility solutions including the unique and fully electric masterpiece BMW CE 02 is a consistent step to also shape the future together with TVS Motor Company." "And today's start of production of our unique CE 02 marks a significant milestone in our joint and future cooperation," he added.
In 2022, Schramm said BMW Motorrad achieved the best sales result in the company's history by selling 202,895 motorcycles and scooters.
TVS Motor is proud to be associated with BMW CE 02 where the scope includes design and development, delivering world class quality, supply chain management and industrialisation, an official said. In August, TVS Motor Company and BMW Motorrad celebrated 10 years of their long and strategic partnership.
Spanning over product development, design, technology, knowledge sharing, and developing common platforms for both their global customers, the strategic partnership between the two companies has achieved a series of milestones globally.
TVS motor company and BMW Motorrad signed a long-term strategic partnership in April 2013, to manufacture sub-500cc motorcycles for global markets.
This collaboration has resulted in the development of four products on the 310cc platform: BMW G 310 R, BMW 310 GS, BMW G310 RR and TVS Motor Company's flagship motorcycle, TVS Apache RR 310, a company statement said.
