Auto components major Bharat Forge will make a strategic investment of up to Rs 300 million to acquire 45% stake in Pune-based electric vehicle (EV) startup TORK Motors, reported Live Mint. Notably, Bharat Forge is also based out of Pune.

Tork is an e-vehicle startup focused on electric two-wheelers and premium electric motorcycles.

Bharat Forge will acquire stake in the startup in three tranches based on achieving various milestones from time to time.

"The investment committee of the company has approved the acquisition of 4,736 equity shares of Rs 10 each at a premium of Rs 21,103 each and 2,841 preference shares of Rs 100 each at a premium of Rs 21,013 as an initial subscription," Bharat Forge said in a BSE filing.

In a separate filing, the company said it will make a strategic investment of up to Rs 300 million for acquisition of 45 per cent stake in TORK. The company will acquire stake in three tranches based on achieving various milestones from time to time.

Tork was founded by Kapil Shelke, a mechanical engineer with a passion for racing. Shelke has built five motorcycle prototypes at Tork.

In April 2016, TORK had raised angel funding for an undisclosed amount from a host of marquee investors including Ola founders Bhavish Agarwal, Ankit Bhati and a group of angels led by Harpreet Grover, the chief executive and co-founder of CoCubes.

Thereafter, in September 2016, the startup unveiled India's first all-electric motorcycle - T6X, which has been priced at Rs. 1,24,999.

The other electric two-wheeler startups with which TORK competes are -- Bengaluru based Ather Energy and Emflux, Hyderabad based Tork Motorcycles, and Ampere Vehicles. All these startups specifically Ather Energy are well funded.

The demand for electric two-wheelers is expected to be around 1.3 mn by 2020-21, according to industry estimates.

In May 2017, Indian government released a report called Transformative Mobility Solutions for India, which carried recommendations of how the Indian subcontinent should electrify all its vehicles by the end of year 2032. Along with suggesting an all-electric fleet on Indian roads by 2032, the report also suggests decreasing the taxes and interest rates for loans on electric vehicles.
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