Ola Electric Mobility Private Limited announced that it has appointed former CEO of Vodafone Group Plc Arun Sarin as an independent director on its board. Sarin, who has also invested in Ola (first in 2015) and in Ola Electric in its series-A funding earlier this year, will be a mentor and advisor to the latter in its overall business strategy.
Sarin also serves on the boards of Cisco Systems, Accenture, Charles Schwab and Ola’s parent company, ANI Technologies.
“Electric Mobility at scale is the need of the hour and can help us solve some of the world’s most complex problems like climate change, pollution, over-dependence on non-renewables amongst others," Sarin said commenting on his appointment.
Ola plans to bring one million electric vehicles on Indian roads by 2022 along with setting up an ecosystem for EV charging (via battery swapping stations). As part of that, Ola Electric’s initial focus will be on electric two- and three-wheelers.
“Ola Electric is pioneering the change by building an ecosystem that can help catalyze the adoption of electric vehicles globally. I look forward to working with Bhavish and the team at Ola Electric, towards their bold vision for the future of mobility," Sarin added.
Bhavish Aggarwal, co-founder and chief executive, Ola said, “I am very excited to welcome Arun on the board of Ola Electric. Over the years, his guidance and support have helped Ola grow as an organization with a global perspective. We aim to build an ecosystem that can accelerate the adoption of electric mobility in India and across the world. Arun’s experience of building global businesses and his deep understanding of emerging markets and opportunities will be very valuable for us at Ola Electric in executing towards our mission. We look forward to his continued guidance and mentorship."
