Airlink to Launch Electric Bike Brand ‘AirV’ as Smartphone Maker Diversifies Into EVs

Airlink Communication Limited, one of Pakistan’s largest smartphone assemblers, is moving into electric vehicles. The company informed the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Thursday that its board has approved the establishment of an electric bike manufacturing project under a new in-house brand, AirV.

The disclosure was formal and brief; the project involves setting up an advanced electric bike assembly plant at Airlink’s existing manufacturing facility in the Sundar Green Special Economic Zone (SGSEZ), Lahore. The board has authorised management to proceed with all regulatory, commercial and operational steps needed to implement it.

A Company Best Known for Something Else Entirely

Airlink’s core business is smartphones and IT hardware; the company handles import, export, distribution, and retail of communication and IT-related products, including smartphones, tablets, and laptop accessories. It’s not, on the surface, an obvious candidate for an EV manufacturing bet.

But the move fits a pattern rather than breaking one. The disclosure was submitted as a material information filing under Section 96 of the Securities Act, 2015, and Clause 5.6.1(a) of the PSX Regulations, standard procedure for a board decision investors need to know about immediately. In its own words, Airlink said the project reflects a long-term strategy to diversify its manufacturing portfolio into technology-driven mobility solutions and to capture growing demand for electric vehicles in Pakistan.

The market reacted before the ink was dry. Airlink’s share price rose 2.10% to Rs135.43 on the PSX by mid-afternoon on Thursday, following the announcement.

What’s Missing From the Disclosure

For a project this significant, the filing is notably thin on specifics. The disclosure did not specify the project’s investment value, production capacity, or expected commencement date. That’s not unusual for an early-stage board approval; companies often disclose the decision to proceed before finalising financial or operational details, but it means AirV remains, for now, a stated intention rather than a scoped project. Investors and market watchers will be looking for a follow-up disclosure once those figures are settled.

Part of a Broader Expansion Pattern

This isn’t Airlink’s first diversification move in the past year. The company previously approved incorporating a wholly owned subsidiary, ZEXO Technologies (Private) Limited, with an authorised investment of Rs200 million. Separately, another Airlink subsidiary, Select Technologies Limited, announced plans to raise capital through an IPO and list on the PSX, with Arif Habib Limited appointed as lead manager for that offering. Select Technologies had earlier entered a strategic partnership with Hisense to locally manufacture and distribute consumer electronics.

The Sundar Green SEZ facility itself has already been positioned as more than a smartphone plant. Airlink has said the site is intended to support potential export manufacturing of mobile phones, laptops, LED televisions, electronics and home appliances for international brands, meaning the AirV project adds an electric-mobility line to a facility that was already being built out for broader manufacturing ambitions.

The company’s financial trajectory gives some context for the expansion appetite. Airlink’s profit after tax grew sharply in recent reporting periods, and the company carries a PACRA long-term rating of A with a short-term rating of A1, a credit profile that gives it more room to fund diversification bets than a company under financial strain would have.

Why an Electric Bike Plant, and Why Now

Pakistan’s electric two-wheeler market is still in its early stages relative to markets like India or China, but it’s drawing increasing manufacturing interest as fuel prices and import costs make petrol bikes progressively more expensive to run for a price-sensitive consumer base. Electric bikes require a lower capital and technical threshold to assemble locally than four-wheeled EVs, making them a more accessible entry point for a company without prior automotive manufacturing experience.

For Airlink specifically, the logic is about spreading risk. Smartphone assembly in Pakistan operates on thin margins shaped heavily by import duties, currency swings and shifting government tax policy on mobile devices. A second manufacturing vertical, even a nascent one, gives the company a hedge against volatility in its core business, and AirV lets it do so using a facility and regulatory relationship (SGSEZ) it has already invested in.

Whether AirV becomes a meaningful contributor to Airlink’s revenue or remains a modest side venture will depend on details the company hasn’t yet disclosed: how much capital is committed, what production capacity looks like, and how quickly the plant can move from board approval to assembled units on the road.