On February 9, 2026, reports confirmed that Ola Electric (and its parent company, Ola) has surrendered approximately 170,000 square feet of premium office space in Bengaluru. This move is part of an aggressive cost-rationalization strategy to counter a severe decline in electric vehicle (EV) sales and market share.
1. Details of the Real Estate Exit
The “trimming” of office space is centered in India’s tech hub, Bengaluru, where the company had previously expanded rapidly.
- Koramangala Consolidation: Ola surrendered over 112,000 sq ft at the Prestige-RMZ Startech campus, relinquishing the entire 7th and 8th floors of Tower B. Global tech firm Accenture has reportedly taken over this space.
- Electronic City Reduction: At Infozone, where Ola operates its Battery Innovation Centre, the company gave up nearly 60,000 sq ft out of the 200,000 sq ft it previously held.
- Remaining Footprint: Ola continues to occupy about 427,000 sq ft at Prestige Startech for its corporate headquarters, with a lease renewed until 2030.
2. Sales and Market Share “Plummet”
The office consolidation follows a disastrous performance in the electric two-wheeler market throughout 2025 and early 2026.
- Market Share Collapse: Ola Electric’s market share has fallen from a dominant 35% at the end of 2024 to just 5.87% in January 2026.
- Volume Decline: Sales units plummeted by 51% in 2025 (dropping from 407,700 units in 2024 to 199,316 units in 2025).
- Competitive Pressure: Once the undisputed leader, Ola has now been overtaken by legacy players like TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto, as well as its direct rival, Ather Energy.
3. Simultaneous Workforce Reductions
The real estate exit coincides with a new round of layoffs announced in late January and early February 2026.
- 5% Layoff: The company is currently laying off approximately 5% of its workforce (about 620 employees).
- Automation Pivot: Management stated the cuts are part of a “structural transformation” aimed at replacing front-end manual roles with automation to improve margins.
- Successive Trims: This marks the third significant workforce reduction in less than two years, following earlier cuts in late 2024 and March 2025.
4. Financial Health and Strategy Shift
Ola is pivoting from “volume-led growth” to “survival mode” as it struggles to achieve profitability.
- Revenue Guidance: The company recently slashed its FY26 revenue forecast to ₹3,000–₹3,200 crore, a significant drop from the earlier estimate of ₹4,700 crore.
- Service Struggles: Persistent complaints regarding vehicle quality and long service delays have eroded brand trust. In response, the company launched the “Hyperservice” initiative, claiming to now resolve 80% of service requests on the same day.
- The Energy Pivot: Founder Bhavish Aggarwal is now betting on the “Ola Shakti” residential battery storage business to offset the slump in scooter sales.
Conclusion: A “Leaner” Future
By surrendering nearly 1.7 lakh sq ft of office space and cutting hundreds of jobs, Ola Electric is attempting to strip away the “bloat” of its hyper-expansion phase. While the company’s auto business turned marginally EBITDA positive in late 2025, the massive decline in market share suggests that 2026 will be a defining year for whether Ola can remain a top-tier player or if it has “scaled too fast” to survive.
