Gogoro Inc (睿能創意), the Taiwanese electric scooter maker backed by former US vice president Al Gore, sees the smog-choked streets of Southeast Asia as the ideal target market as it embarks on a quest to expand its business overseas.
The start-up is looking to launch sales of its scooters in its first market outside Taiwan, Gogoro founder and chief executive officer Horace Luke (陸學森) said in an interview in Taipei on Tuesday.
He mentioned Manila as one city the company is considering.
“We’re planning our next big city move,” Luke said. “We have lots of cities to choose from. We’re finalizing which one right now.”
POLLUTION PROMISES
The move comes at a time when Gogoro is under increasing pressure to deliver on its promise after receiving high-profile backing last year. The company raised US$300 million from Gore’s sustainability-focused investment firm Generation Investment Management LLP, Singapore’s Temasek Holdings PTE, Japan’s Sumitomo Corp and French utility Engie SA.
The investment raised its valuation to about US$800 million, according to a person familiar with the matter.
“I’ve always told my shareholders, the day I return a dividend is the day you should sell your shares,” Luke said. “The world sells about 50 million two-wheel vehicles every year. That’s a lot of people moving around on two wheels that need to convert to electric.”
After selling its first scooter in Taiwan in 2015, Gogoro is facing increased challenges in its home market. While the government aims to ban the sale of non-electric motorcycles by 2035 as part of a plan to rein in air pollution, traditional scooter manufacturers are putting up more of a fight.
Officials last week held off on a decision to use Gogoro’s battery-swapping system as the national standard after Kaohsiung-based Kwang Yang Motor Co (光陽工業) proposed its own competing system.
The government is yet to schedule another meeting with manufacturers to decide on the issue, the Industrial Development Bureau said on Jan. 18.
SWAP STATIONS
Gogoro has built about 500 battery-swap stations around the nation and plans to add another 500 this year, serving about 50,000 riders.
Once all 21 of the nation’s scooter makers have agreed on which battery system to use, the government plans to build an additional 3,000 stations.
Gogoro scooters are available for sale in Taiwan and for rent in Paris and Berlin.
The company plans to introduce its bikes for rent on the Japanese island of Ishigaki in the first quarter of this year.
“The goal for this year is to make sure the technology is ready, make sure the product is ready, make sure the operations are ready,” Luke said. “Once that’s all ready, we can take it to cities all around the world.”
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