The electric motorcycle industry continues to go from strength to strength as consumers and businesses make the switch to greener vehicles.
Few sights are more familiar to long-time residents of Taiwan than that of the beloved two-wheeler chuntering past, often laden with a seemingly impossible load. But, as a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions, gasoline-powered motorbikes have an uncertain future as the country’s favorite transport option. Now new generations of electric scooters (e-scooters) are quickly gaining a loyal following among users keen to protect the environment while retaining the convenience and fun of a motorcycle.
Once hampered by a lack of charging infrastructure, e-scooters have seen a meteoric rise in popularity with the launch of the Powered by Gogoro Network (PBGN) operated by Taoyuan City-headquartered Gogoro Inc. Offering a simple swap-in-swap-out solution for batteries that is as easy as a traditional refueling stop, the PBGN has over 2,000 stations in operation around the country, meaning riders can avoid wasting time charging their vehicles at home. The network welcomed its latest member last November—bringing the number of participating manufacturers to six—when Taoyuan-based China Motor Corp. (CMC), which previously only produced plug-in e-scooters, announced its first PBGN range.
“Adding our names to the list of companies utilizing the PBGN was an easy choice, given its comprehensive coverage and convenience for users. We’re confident more companies will join the platform as people continue to opt for electric models,” CMC Vice President Chien Ching-wu (錢經武) said. The numbers certainly back up his assertion: about 430,000 electric scooters are registered in Taiwan, and 10 percent of new motorcycles sold in 2020 are powered by electricity.
Electric bikes and scooters made in Taiwan are racking up sales at home and abroad. (Photo courtesy of Kwang Yang Motor Co.)
New Players
Founded in 1969, CMC is one of Taiwan’s leading manufacturers of automobiles, although it only entered the market for e-scooters in 2010, the year before Gogoro was founded. Corporate customers including courier service providers and fast-food restaurant chains were some of the earliest adopters of its vehicles, which are marketed under the E-Moving brand. “Delivery drivers can rack up many thousands of kilometers, so it’s logical for businesses to look at the cost savings associated with switching to electric power compared with gasoline,” Chien said. “Plus e-scooters produce zero emissions and make very little noise—it’s a big advantage in terms of corporate image.”
Consumer sales were given a boost when Gogoro introduced its first model in 2015, bringing with it the battery-swapping technology that it now sells to competitors like CMC. In populous Taipei and New Taipei Cities, PBGN terminals even outnumber gas stations. “As people in Taiwan tend to live in areas with high population densities and few private parking spaces, providing public recharging and swapping facilities is the most sensible solution,” Gogoro Chief Product Officer Peng Ming-i (彭明義) said.
Although the PBGN has undoubtedly helped spur growth in the e-scooter market in Taiwan, the country’s largest producer of gasoline-powered motorcycles Kwang Yang Motor Co. (KYMCO) headquartered in the southern city of Kaohsiung is also playing a major role in the industry’s development. The company operates its own competitor to the Gogoro network called Ionex, which consists of both battery-charging and -swapping stations. KYMCO is also dabbling in the high-end market, with electric racing models such as RevoNex debuting at the Milan Motorcycle Show in November 2019 capable of reaching speeds of up to 205 kph.
Kwang Yang Motor Co. based in southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung City debuts its RevoNex electric motorcycle in Milan in 2019. (Photo courtesy of KYMCO)
Policy Incentives
Innovation from the private sector has undoubtedly been a primary driver behind the rapid rise of e-scooters in Taiwan, but government incentives encouraging adoption of green transportation options like electric vehicles have also played their part. The Industrial Development Bureau (IDB) under the Ministry of Economic Affairs subsidizes each purchase of e-scooters with up to NT$7,000 (US$250) and an additional NT$3,000 (US$107) if the battery is made domestically.
The Cabinet-level Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) gives extra financial support, offering subsidies of up to NT$3,000 to buyers of all electric two-wheelers, including those not covered by the IDB, namely e-scooters and e-bikes running at speeds of less than 25 kph. To qualify for the money, applicants have to deregister a gasoline-powered motorbike purchased prior to June 2007.
Although e-scooters are quickly winning the hearts of consumers, they remain some distance from overtaking gasoline-powered versions as the most common on the country’s roads. “While the market for electric vehicles continues to mature, the government is ensuring that new models of gasoline-fueled bikes and cars adhere to strict emissions standards,” IDB Director General Leu Jang-hwa (呂正華) said.
CMC is wooing corporate users such as state-backed Chunghwa Post Co. as well as food delivery drivers by touting the reduced costs and environmental benefits of its e-scooters. (Photos courtesy of China Motor Corp.)
The EPA has raised official standards for emissions seven times since 1987 and implemented sales bans on the most polluting models. To get noncompliant vehicles off the roads as soon as possible, the EPA also subsidizes the purchase of bikes that meet the newest emission standards. This accelerates the retirement of two-stroke motorbikes; less than 500,000 scooters of this type in Taiwan are now registered, down from 3.56 million in 2008. “Every announcement of new emission standards means more investment from us in developing greener technologies, which is part of our corporate social responsibility,” KYMCO CEO Ko Chun-ping (柯俊斌) said.
Boundless Opportunity
To ensure the transition to an all-electric future progresses apace, the IDB is helping guide local businesses in developing key components such as batteries to ensure a secure supply chain in Taiwan. It has also opened training sessions around the country where mechanics can learn the skills specific to repairing e-scooters. IDB hopes the project can reach workers from 10,000 repair centers by the end of next year. KYMCO set up a similar venture at Taipei Municipal Nangang Vocational High School in 2019, with the company planning to replicate the idea at a further six institutions in the city.
The direction of travel among consumers and government policymakers indicates gasoline motorbikes will eventually be phased out completely, although Taiwan has yet to set an official end date for sales of such vehicles. Meanwhile, similar trends abroad also present opportunities for local businesses. “Southeast and South Asia are major motorcycle markets, but they have long been dominated by Japanese brands,” KYMCO Chairman Allen Ko (柯勝峯) said. “When it comes to e-scooters, Taiwan firms have a great chance to upend the market.” His company is now eyeing Singapore and Indonesia as testing grounds for plans to market e-vehicles across the region.
Sales of e-scooters in Taiwan are growing rapidly, with about 10 percent of new motorbikes sold last year powered by electricity. (Photo by Chin Hung-hao)
Taiwan’s strength in producing electric two-wheelers is already earning its manufacturers market share around the world. The country is now the number one exporter of e-bikes to the European Union, according to the IDB. Globally, Taiwan exported 640,000 e-bikes in 2019, registering year-on-year growth of 125 percent.
As electric bikes, cars and motorcycles look set to dominate the world of personal transportation in the coming decades, conditions for the development of e-scooters and e-bikes in Taiwan have never looked better, CMC’s Chien said. “With lots of companies now launching their own electric models, there’s no doubt competition is fierce. But considering these still only constitute a minority of registered vehicles on the roads, there’s plenty of room for growth if manufacturers are committed to meeting consumer demands and providing innovative solutions.”
Write to Oscar Chung at mhchung@mofa.gov.tw