Agra-based Exalta is powering clean energy space with its solar-powered products; clocked Rs 5 Cr turnover in 2018-19
Ashutosh Verma bootstrapped and founded Exalta in 2009. From making just 10 solar ACs in 2015, today the company manufactures 300-500 solar ACs a month and even exports to countries like Oman, Nigeria, Afghanistan, and Dubai.
Ashutosh Verma wanted to build a solar air conditioner since he was in high school. He says, "We used to have only one AC at home and my parents would often discourage me from running it for longer hours because of the amount of electricity it consumed. This led me to look for a solution.”
Ashutosh says he would often go to cyber cafes and search on the internet about solutions to his predicament. This is how he came across the idea of solar air conditioner. But coming from a working class background, he couldn’t immediately think of diving into entrepreneurship and had to toil his way up.
After saving up some money by teaching and working for companies like Appin Technology, Quarbz, and other government agencies, Ashutosh started in 2009 with an initial investment of Rs 8 lakh. The bootstrapped Agra-based company manufactures solar air conditioners (ACs) and other solar products.
A data scientist, Ashutosh shares that in the initial years, some funding talks with investors didn’t materialise and this compelled him to take help from the banks. He says, the actual operations of the company started only in 2011.
By 2015, Exalta was manufacturing around 10 solar air conditioners a year. Today, it manufactures around 300-500 solar ACs a month and also exports to countries like Afghanistan, Nigeria, Oman, and Dubai.
Apart from ACs, the company has also diversified and launched other solar products like geysers, air purifiers, and mini ventilators, among other things. However, Ashutosh says the solar AC is their main product.
The company claims to have clocked a turnover of Rs 5 crore in FY 2018-19.
Why solar air conditioners?
Ashutosh says that typically six 320-watt panels need to be installed on the rooftop of a residential or commercial space to run solar ACs. Exalta manufactures everything in the company’s unit in Noida, except for the indoor unit, which is imported from Thailand.
According to him, a solar air conditioner lasts for a minimum of 25 years, which is also the life expectancy of solar panels.
Exalta manufactures solar ACs in five sizes - half ton, one ton, one-and-a-half ton, two ton, and two-and-a-half ton. The half-ton ACs costs about Rs 18,000 but the ACs starting from one ton cost between Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh.
While solar ACs are well-known in the US, Australia, China, and Europe, it is still a nascent market in India, says Ashutosh. Companies including Videocon, Mitsubishi, and a few others manufacture and sell solar ACs in India.
Speaking about the utilisation of solar ACs in India, Shreyas Gowda, Product Head at Oorjan, a company that provides turnkey solutions for solar projects across residential and corporate spaces, says, solar air conditioners are very similar to any other normal AC except that they run on solar energy.
He adds, “With a steady rise in temperature and electricity unit prices, the need for solar to power air conditioners is increasing.” He says that the solar ACs are more effective in the commercial space as compared to the residential space.
Ashutosh claims that solar powered ACs can save 80-100 percent of electricity.
Apart from solar ACs, the company manufactures other solar products like geysers, air purifiers, and mini ventilators
The market and challenges
Building customer trust and marketing were some of the other challenges Ashutosh faced. He says, “Initially, I would install the air conditioners for free at offices of distributors and vendors. When they realised that these ACs were performing well, I got my payments and more orders.”
While Exalta is primarily a B2B company, it soon plans to start selling through ecommerce platforms like Amazon and Flipkart to scale.
Ashutosh says that generating demand for solar ACs continues to be a challenge. “A lot of times I have had distributors come to me with queries, but they eventually turn to Chinese manufacturers because of the cost factor.”
Future of solar energy
Ashutosh is optimistic that going forward the demand for solar ACs will go up in India. The demand is already picking steam, he says. Exalta has 3,000 customers across India and other countries as of now.
Ashutosh says,
“The rich are not concerned about solar ACs because they can afford electricity at any cost. Most of my customers have been middle class people who have installed solar ACs with the intention to get relief on their bills.”
The company had plans to raise funding but everything halted because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The company is now waiting for the market to recover to expand to smaller cities and introduce more products in the clean energy space.
“Solar powered air conditioners will not only help in the reduction of greenhouse gases but will also help India to achieve its ambitious target of 175GW of Renewable Energy (RE) capacity by 2022,” says Shreyas.
Edited by Megha Reddy
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