EVs EVerywhere

• “1 liter of petrol produces 2.2 kilograms of carbon dioxide. You’re looking at easily billions of tons of carbon dioxide produced yearly from the 120-130 million motorcycles across Indonesia,” shared James Chan, Founder & CEO of 500-backed electric motorcycle company ION Mobility.
• This is what drove James to start a company dedicated to affordable, desirable, sustainable mobility for everyone, and the team is going big in Indonesia. As part of the country’s push for the mass adoption of electric vehicles, the government has pledged over US$450M to subsidize e-motorcycle sales through 2024.
• As of October 2022, there are only 32,000 e-motorcycles on the road — this translates to under 1% of the total number of motorcycles in the country. By 2024, the government hopes to add another 1 million.
• Thanks to this commitment, James believes that in the next 5 years, Indonesia’s electric two-wheelers as a percentage of new sales will climb north of 30%.
• Is he worried about competition from combustion motorcycle manufacturers who are also making the electric shift? “Incumbents are inching, not racing towards electric, because of the existing profits from their wide selection of combustion motorcycles,” James said. “They are also supported by an extensive supply chain and partners that can’t be overhauled overnight.”
• He added, “We’re not just a hard technology company. We’re also a lifestyle brand company that’s appealing to the next generation of motorcycle consumers who don’t want to lower their price-to-performance standards, and who also want to take positive steps towards leaving behind a better earth for future generations.” If you’ve visited ION Mobility’s website, you’d agree their M1-S is sexy!
• Helping to move the needle is the recent investment from strategic investor TVS Motors, one of the largest two-wheeler manufacturers in the world. Both teams have already started collaborating on the bike design and successfully lightened its weight by 7-8% for greater efficiency.
• “We’ve also been given access to an electric motorcycle platform by TVS,” James revealed. “We can explore how to co-design, co-develop, and co-market future e-bikes together.”
• Listen to the full interview here. Then, head over to check out the sexy M1-S!