Although the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted their initial plans, two Singapore-based startups are continuing to ramp up their efforts to provide their very own electric motorcycles.
This comes after Singapore relaxed its rules on electric motorcycles in April, allowing high-power motorcycles with a rated power above 10 kW to drive on the roads as a part of efforts to encourage using cleaner vehicles.
The virus outbreak has caused “minor disruption” to the corporate’s supply chain, said Scorpio Electric’s acting chief operating officer, Muhammad Taureza.
However, the brand stays heading in the right direction to launch its zero-emission, fully electric, smart motorcycles and not using a “significant delay”, he said, adding that it goals to accomplish that by the center of this 12 months or as soon because the Covid-19 19 pandemic situation stabilizes.
Scorpio Electric is a brand owned by EuroSports Technologies based in Singapore, supported by EuroSports Global, listed on the SGX stock exchange.
Since March, Scorpio Electric has expanded its headquarters in Teban Gardens to 7,000 sq m. The area includes offices and showrooms, in addition to 4,000 sq m. intended for a factory and a warehouse.
The plant is predicted to provide about 8,000 electric motorcycles a 12 months, Dr. Taureza said.
He added that while components will likely be manufactured elsewhere, Scorpio Electric bikes will likely be assembled on the Singapore location.
Scorpio Electric’s chief technology officer, Tham Kwang Sheun, noted that making motorcycles “smart” using artificial intelligence and data analytics will allow them to be much more energy efficient.
“This means that when you get on, the bike will be intelligent enough to tell you how to better plan your journey and how much fuel you will use, taking into account the working conditions,” he explained.
Scorpio Electric also goals to increase environmental sustainability to its production line, Tham said, noting that some materials used to make motorcycles will be replaced with “bio-based” materials which can be “somewhat recyclable.”
The switch to electric motorcycles holds “very promise” for reducing greenhouse gas emissions within the region, said Tham, who previously worked on the Land Transportation Office as head of the autonomous vehicle program office.
The company originally aimed to supply test rides and launch pre-sales of Model 1 electric motorcycles in Jakarta by the third quarter of 2020, even though it had to return to the drafting board as a result of Covid-19.
“We aim to launch our Model 1 in Indonesia in early 2021 or earlier if the pandemic allows,” Chan said.
In addition to the headquarters – which can function a regional design and research and development center – Ion Mobility also has offices in Jakarta and Guangzhou. Chan said the corporate is targeted on becoming the leading electric motorcycle company in Southeast Asia.
It goals to start out in Indonesia, where 6.5 million latest ICE motorcycles were sold in 2019, and goals to capture 1% of the Indonesian market in the primary two years of sales.
Meanwhile, Scorpio Electric desires to be a “global brand,” Dr. Taureza said.
“We want to be in the same ranks as Apple and Tesla,” he said, although he noted it might should be done one step at a time.
As a “homegrown Singaporean brand”, Scorpio Electric’s fundamental priority is the Southeast Asian market, primarily Vietnam, Indonesia and Singapore, he said.
Source: This is an element of a story originally published in Asia News Channel.
