Kofa & TAILG Associate To Deploy 200,000 Electrical Bikes & 5,000 Battery Swap Stations In Africa by 2030

Kofa, a Ghanaian firm specializing in battery swap networks, and TAILG are collectively creating a battery swap-enabled electrical bike known as Jidi. Kofa says the primary orders of the Jidi are anticipated to reach in Ghana on the finish of 2023. Kofa says based mostly on some great benefits of its batteries and battery swap networks, the Jidi will scale back rider prices by as much as 30%. The partnership is focusing on to deploy 200,000 electrical automobiles utilizing the Kofa battery swap community by 2030. 5 thousand battery swap stations will likely be required throughout the continent to facilitate the rollout of those electrical bikes.

Kofa is not only energetic within the mobility house, however can be tackling how folks entry clear and reasonably priced vitality in city environments throughout Africa. The preliminary use circumstances for Kofa’s battery packs are in electrical bikes and stationary backup energy wants. The bike sector is presently a $30 billion annual market throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. Over half of this spending is on petrol utilized in bikes, and the rest is on petrol and diesel utilized in turbines. Subsequently, accelerating the adoption of electrical bikes and related infrastructure akin to battery swap stations will likely be one of many vital pathways to decreasing prices attributable to fossil gas combustion within the transport and backup electrical energy technology sectors.

The TAILG Group has been within the electrical car trade for 20 years. Kofa says the Jidi is a battery swap-enabled electrical bike designed and manufactured for the various and rising African market. The Jidi is designed round Kofa’s extractable battery, which may obtain “limitless battery vary” by being swapped at any Kofa’s Swap & Go websites. Throughout the remainder of this 12 months, Kofa’s swap community will speed up deployment in Ghana, and by 2024, Kofa will spend money on and construct swap infrastructure in a number of new international locations.

Kofa says the Jidi’s twin batteries can present a variety of as much as 100 km between every battery change. The Jidi can attain a most velocity of 85 km/h. Kofa says a number of technical purposes adjust to United Nations and EU requirements (UN/ECE).

Erik Nygard, CEO of Kofa Applied sciences mentioned: “This can be a main milestone that can assist speed up EV adoption throughout Africa and play a significant half in decreasing city air pollution; bikes alone emit over fifty million tonnes of CO2 yearly. TailG is the primary main EV OEM getting into Africa with a prepared resolution for scale by partnering with Kofa to offer the battery swap & go resolution. We’re actually excited to assist allow this.”

Erik provides that TAILG, as a number one international EV OEM, can ship the dimensions each by way of gross sales, manufacturing capability (which is presently severely missing throughout the continent), and supporting after service components and provide chain (one other vital side for excessive scale). “This deal supplies severe alternatives for a lot of components of the already excising car ecosystem akin to mechanics, sellers, giant scale distributors, car financing to call a couple of. It’s a divide and conquer technique, we see worth in partnerships versus siloed vertical integration methods. Therefore general higher worth for all components of present ecosystem. This can permit Kofa to double down all its efforts on creating and constructing a buyer -entric battery swapping community, a superior expertise to filling a tank. The dimensions of this deal makes this essential not just for bikes, but in addition for small companies and houses in city environments missing dependable vitality entry throughout Africa. Our swap & go mannequin is open to all.”

TAILG provides that the introduction of Jidi in Ghana will utterly disrupt the long-term dependence on fossil gas for journey and transportation, successfully promote the alternative of gas bikes with electrical bikes, speed up TAILG’s mission to remodel transportation in “Belt and Highway” international locations into the “zero carbon” period, and contribute to the worldwide effort of nations to fight local weather change and enhance environmental high quality.

A few of TAILG’s earlier partnerships with different key stakeholders embody their work with the United Nations Electrical Mobility Challenge, and it has successively piloted and promoted electrical car initiatives in Kenya, the Philippines, and Vietnam. TAILG says its merchandise are exported to greater than ninety international locations and areas around the globe. TAILG additionally plans to combine Kofa batteries into a variety of recent and present fashions and assist the unfold of electrical automobiles in Africa. Jidi’s begin in Ghana, after which its launch into different African international locations, will assist TAILG electrical automobiles run additional in international inexperienced and low-carbon journey.

I actually like Kofa’s strategy. It’ll assist deal with vital issues in a variety of international locations on the continent each within the mobility sector in addition to within the stationary storage sector. The truth that they’re focusing on each the mobility sector in addition to the stationary storage market with a uniform kind issue permits for scalability and helps to create a vital mass for his or her merchandise. Interoperability has been an enormous situation on the continent, with a plethora of startups all having totally different kind elements, connectors, and administration programs. A unified strategy is required to develop the sector. I hope to actually see the ramp-up in manufacturing of the electrical bikes now that Kofa is working with TAILG on merchandise such because the upcoming Jidi.

Photos courtesy of Kofa