Uber rival Ola to build world's biggest scooter factory in India

Uber rival Ola plans to build the world's largest scooter factory in India, aiming to make two million electric two-wheelers a year for Asia, Europe and Latin America.

The Indian ride-hailing firm, which has financial backing from Japan's SoftBank, said Monday it will create 10,000 jobs and invest $325 million in the plant in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

The factory will help make India a "manufacturing hub for electric vehicles" as Ola gears up to launch its e-scooters in the coming months, the company said.

Motorbikes and mopeds, which are much cheaper than four-wheelers, are hugely popular in India's congested cities, with sales outselling those of cars many times over.

But they also add to air pollution and Ola hopes to profit from government efforts to promote electric vehicles by expanding from ride-hailing to making scooters itself.

This year Ola announced plans to hire over 2,000 people for its electric business, bringing in General Motors veteran Jose Pinheiro to head its manufacturing operations.

In May the firm, which is active in India, Australia, New Zealand and Britain, acquired Dutch electric scooter maker Etergo, reportedly for $250 million.

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