By: Staff Writer Colombo (LNW): Creating automobile history, Ideal Motors will be launching Sri Lanka’s first electric car, ‘Moksha’ to the market in November 2023. The mentor behind this historic project, Chairman Ideal Motors Nalain Welgama said that ‘Ideal Moksha’ is fitted with a 22.46 kWh Lithium battery that provides a range of up to 200 kilometres on a single charge by plugging into a 15-amp domestic charger overnight. “We are also proud to announce that this battery too is made in Sri Lanka increasing the total value addition of the car to over 45%,” he said. The warranty available on the battery will be 5 years. Our island-wide aftermarket network will ensure Moksha electric car battery being assembled in Sri Lanka.Moksha electric car battery being assembled in Sri Lanka. an unmatched level of service.” Classified as a four-wheeled electric quadricycle, with a sitting capacity for four the ‘Ideal Moksha’ is to be priced under Rs. 4.5 million. For the first time in history, this will also reverse Sri Lanka’s image as a motor vehicle import destination to an export destination opening up high FOREX earning business to the country. “The current import ban on motor vehicles also encouraged us to invest more in this project and it proves the decision by the government was correct as it not only saved dollar drain for car imports but also accelerated a local home-grown car assembly industry. “One does not think only of the local sales as we have already received export inquiries from Africa for ‘Ideal Moksha’ and exports would happen from the end of 2024. Our investment in R&D, ground-up preparations etc has cost us around Rs.100 million so far including the moulds.”Welgama said. “We have built a separate brand new 30,000 Sq ft facility next to the Mahindra plant in Welipenna for this operation. He said Our moksha will be lined out in the new manufacturing plant by ideal motors. This facility cost us Rs 250 million. The working capital requirements shall be Rs 500 million. We are looking at a total investment of Rs. 1 billion for our people’s electric car built locally,” Drawing inspiration from the iconic Austin Mini Moke that took the world by storm, the Ideal Moksha is geared to be a game changer in the Sri Lankan market and the most practical solution in the current technology transition phase towards a sustainable, carbon-neutral future. Sri Lanka’s first home-grown fully-electric car will be a fully air-conditioned vehicle with a push start and alloy wheels. In addition, it will also have a 7-inch multimedia touchscreen display that comes with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility where the passengers could access information, favourite music, and maps. “The Ideal Morksha is completely homegrown! We learnt the art of car making from our joint assembly plant in Welipenna from auto major Mahindra of India.”