Eicher Motors To Partner With EV Firm Stark Future

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Royal Enfield’s parent company has announced its plans to collaborate with EV company Stark for future electric designs. (Eicher Motors Ltd./)

As 2022 winds to close, one of the most persistent trends in the motorcycle world continues apace, with the shift toward electrification heating up well into the new year and beyond. New startups in the electric motorcycle space just keep coming (Ryvid, Sondors, etc.), while established firms like LiveWire look to expand their lineup with new models in 2023, and still other brands are playing catch-up via strategic partnerships with existing EV firms (Honda’s Greenger-built CRF-E2, for example). The latest addition to that last list is Eicher Motors Ltd., the parent company of Royal Enfield, which has just announced plans for a collaboration with electric motorcycle manufacturer Stark Future SL.

Stark Future is the firm behind the development of the “world’s fastest motocrosser”—the Stark Varg. (Stark Future SL/)

If you know the two players involved, the forthcoming partnership is a pretty big deal.

You’re probably aware that Eicher Motors Ltd. (EML) is the parent company of Royal Enfield, a global leader in the middleweight motorcycle segment, while Stark Future is the Spain-based EV company and the brains behind the newly developed Stark Varg electric motocrosser (which also holds several patents). It appears Eicher has seen the writing on the wall, and as part of the collaboration, EML is investing 50 million euros to gain an approximately 10 percent stake in Stark, opening up opportunities for both to collaborate on future electric projects. According to the accompanying company release, the investment will pave the way for a long-term partnership that will include “collaborative research and development in electric motorcycles, technology sharing, technical licensing, and manufacturing.”

Related: Stark Varg Electric Motocross Bike First Ride

For EML/Enfield, the partnership is simply a much more efficient way to get a foot in the consumer EV space than going at it from scratch. While Enfield has said that it’s “made huge strides on its EV journey over the last few years” and that it intends to “create uniquely differentiated electric motorcycles with strong Royal Enfield DNA,” there’s still a gap that Stark’s deep knowledge of the EV world and connected technology can fill, and which Enfield can leverage at scale.

For Stark’s part, it’s a no-brainer as well: EML’s deep pockets and global distribution network can only help spur its own development of high-end performance electric motorcycles, while allowing it to also expand its offerings to more mainstream products and still driving innovation.

EML Managing Director Siddhartha Lal believes Stark’s EV know-how can be harnessed into future Enfield products. Electric Super Meteor 650, anybody? (EML/)

In a statement about the future partnership, EML Managing Director Siddhartha Lal said, “We love the vision, passion, and focus of the amazing team at Stark Future. Leisure motorcycles do not easily lend themselves to EV technology at this stage, due to challenges like the battery range, packaging, weight, and cost…Stark Future has been able to understand and harness the potential of EV technology by dramatically outperforming ICE offerings, without compromising on range, weight, and cost. We believe that Stark Future has the highest potential for real breakout growth…into other contiguous segments and beyond.”

Related: Royal Enfield’s Electric Future

Stark CEO Anton Wass is also keen on the potentially symbiotic relationship, which will transfer (hopefully) Stark’s tech onto Enfield bikes. (Stark Future SL/)

Meanwhile, Stark Future founder and CEO Anton Wass had this to say, “We aimed to challenge and inspire the motorcycle industry with the creation of the Stark Varg. To now partner with one of the very first motorcycle brands in history, and be part of their journey towards sustainability is a huge inspiration for us. We have been deeply impressed by what they have created…as well as the mindset and focus to continue to build and develop Royal Enfield into the future of sustainable motorcycling. With the Stark Varg we believe we have a launch model that will reset benchmarks, so to know that the bike’s technical basis will spread much further and filter into more machinery and products is another source of pride for us. It has been a short, intense, and incredible journey for us so far but our link with Royal Enfield and what lies in store in the coming years are brilliant signs for the future.”

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