Electric motor bikes made in US will soon be on Kenya roads
A group of local investors is in talks with a US-based electric motorcycle company to establish an assembly plant.
Alternet Systems (ALYI) disclosed the talks on the planned assembly line following a deal where its Kenyan partners attracted initial sales order for 2,000 ReVolt Electric Motorcycles valued at Sh2 billion.
It said orders worth Sh150 million had since been made, encouraging further talks set for next month in London, UK where ALYI will meet a potential European investment group.
“With the combination of the physical plant asset and the initial Sh2 billion order, a potential European investment group has formally expressed initial investment terms and invited ALYI management to meet in London later this month for the purpose of refining the terms into a contract,” it said.
The company told shareholders that its management recently flew to Nairobi where it held key meetings with their Kenyan partners on the planned assembly plant.
Kibo Africa and Car & General locally assemble Kibo and TVS motorcycles respectively but a majority of motorcycle brands from Honda, Bajaj’s Boxer, Yamaha among other low-cost Chinese brands are imported as completely built units.
In 2017, Kenyans acquired 186,434 motorcycles, with sales for January to December 2018 hitting 177,830.