Shares of Bharat Forge rose more than 1% on March 9, a day after the company announced that its electric vehicle subsidiary Kalyani Powertrain Ltd had opened its first e-bike manufacturing plant in MIDC Chakan.

“The factory, which has a capacity of 60,000 units per annum and is expandable to 1 lakh units per annum, will assemble e-bikes for Tork Motors Private Limited, which is 64.29% owned by Kalyani Powertrain Limited,” Bharat Forge said in a bourse filing.

Shares of the company were up 1.2% at Rs 844.15 on the BSE at 9:16 am. The stock has fallen to Rs 834.55 from Rs 908.65 in December 2022.

Analysts highlighted the growth of electric vehicle (EV) and defence businesses as key growth levers in the coming years.

Geojit Financial Services highlighted that its two- and three-wheeled electric vehicle partner Tork Motors has received approval for the Fast Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric and Hybrid Vehicles (FAME-II) scheme.

Some companies have been accused of claiming government benefits without meeting the mandatory 50% local sourcing requirement. Some two-wheeler manufacturers claimed FAME without native content, making the review process long.

FAME-II, the centre’s flagship electric vehicle promotion programme, has distributed subsidies to around 80% of the programme’s target of electric two-wheelers. The centre has set a three-year disbursement of Rs 10,000 crore starting April 1, 2019. This includes supporting demand incentives for various electric vehicles, including 1 lakh electric two-wheelers.

The government is offering incentives of Rs 15,000 per kWh, capped at 40% of the total vehicle cost for electric two-wheelers, provided they meet specific localised criteria.

The brokerage highlighted that the company has also won orders to develop components for commercial electric vehicles in the light truck segment and electronics for industrial systems.