Gogoro’s battery-swapping electric scooters begin operations in Singapore
Gogoro, widely considered to be the world leader in battery swapping for light electric vehicles like e-motorbikes, has just launched operations in its latest global expansion to Singapore. A new partnership will now see Gogoro’s battery-swapping technology deployed for food delivery.
Gogoro and Cycle & Carriage Singapore (C&C) have announced a partnership with food delivery service foodpanda for a battery swapping scooter pilot. The partnership comes after the Singapore Land Transport Authority’s (LTA) announcement last year that it awarded Gogoro and C&C with a battery-swapping sandbox pilot for electric two-wheeled vehicles.
The electric scooters are ideal for commercial use such as delivery scooters like these that are in operation throughout the day. Gogoro scooters don’t need to stop and charge their batteries since the company is built upon its in-house battery-swapping architecture. That allows scooter riders to spend just a few seconds swapping batteries instead of many hours charging them.
The companies involved in the partnership explained that the pilot operated with foodpanda will offer insights that will be used to accelerate the adoption of sustainable mobility as Singapore moves toward a transportation system using cleaner and more sustainable energy.
As Gogoro’s founder and CEO Horace Luke expanded:
With more than 26 percent of all daily quick deliveries in Taiwan enabled by Gogoro battery swapping, I am excited to be introducing our battery swapping and vehicle technologies in Singapore with two market-leading partners like Cycle & Carriage Singapore and foodpanda. Cities like Singapore are at an inflection point of sustainability and are beginning to embrace sustainable transportation in new impactful ways. On average, last mile delivery riders ride more than six-times the distance as consumer riders, so enabling these delivery riders to adopt smart sustainable electric transportation can have an accelerated impact on a city.
The pilot will operate with Gogoro 2 electric scooters that use the company’s G2 Motor, described as a “hyper-efficient, water-cooled motor delivering incredible and efficient power and performance with a maximum speed of 90km/h.”
The scooters also use Gogoro’s FLO Drive system, which is based around a Gates Carbon Drive belt setup that reduces noise and removes maintenance associated with chain drives.
The Gogoro 2 holds a pair of Gogoro’s approximately 1.7 kWh batteries, whose combined 3.4 kWh capacity offers an estimated city range of up to 100 km (60 miles). The company says that six seconds is all that is needed to swap out the batteries for another 100 km of range.
I own a Gogoro S2 Performance electric scooter that I use as my daily driver, and in practice I find that the swap takes closer to 30 seconds when you include parking, opening the battery compartment, etc. But even 30 seconds is still blazing fast to completely top up the scooter’s “tank,” and is of course even faster than filling up a fuel tank on a combustion scooter – not to mention cleaner and nicer smelling!
In my city, Gogoro scooters are available both for purchase by private owners as well as for commercial use by delivery couriers. I frequently see them used in both roles, each with unique advantages. Commuters never have to worry about finding a place to charge, which is a serious concern in densely populated cities where many apartment dwellers lack a parking spot with a charging plug. Delivery riders don’t have to stop and charge for hours, which would impact their earnings.
Gogoro has aggressively expanded its operations to locations including India, Indonesia, South Korea, Taiwan, Israel, China and more, though the competition seems to have taken notice. Battery swapping has become a key focus of other companies, including KYMCO’s Ionex electric scooter and battery platform, as well as brand-agnostic battery swapping services like Vammo (previously Leoparda). But as others enter the market, they’ll have to compete with Gogoro’s massive first mover advantage. The Gogoro Network currently supports more than 524,000 riders and boasts more than 1.1 million smart batteries in circulation. Those batteries account for over 370 million swaps to date across the company’s 12,200 battery swapping GoStations at over 2,504 locations, which have been responsible for saving more than 250,000 tons of CO2 emissions.
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On today’s informative episode of Quick Charge, we’ve got Honda engineers Jason Hwang and Emilio Sanchez to talk us through some of the things that make the GM Ultium-based Honda Prologue EV feel like a real Honda, and why that matters.
Jason and Emilio talk about some of the choices they made to make the Honda Prologue and Acura ZDX feel different from its GM-branded cousins, and explain why this was much more than a case of badge-engineering. Give it a listen, then let us know what you think of the Prologue and ZDX in the comments.
Today’s episode is sponsored by BLUETTI, a leading provider of portable power stations, solar generators, and energy storage systems. For a limited time, save up to 52% during BLUETTI’s exclusive Black Friday sale, now through November 28, and be sure to use promo code BLUETTI5OFF for 5% off all power stations site wide. Learn more by clicking here.
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Read more: All my favorite EVs, racecars, and robots from Electrify Expo Austin.
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The first EV charging hub funded by the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Program in the Eastern US is now online in Deerfield, Massachusetts.
The town installed the region’s first DC fast chargers (four ports), along with four Level 2 chargers, at 59 North Main Street in South Deerfield.
These new charging stations, funded with $2.46 million from the CFI program, are conveniently located near Interstate 91 in Franklin County, the most rural county in Massachusetts, which serves drivers from Connecticut up to the Canadian border.
The hub also features local and regional bus stops and designated bike lanes with secure onsite bike racks. The chargers are meant to cater to everyone: from local residents and visitors to municipal EVs and commercial vehicles that service the region’s businesses, like those in food and beverage manufacturing.
Gabe Klein, executive director of the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, sees this as a model for future projects:
Multi-modal charging hubs in communities are key to giving more people the choice to ride and drive electric. The Town of Deerfield is showing leadership in building out convenient charging infrastructure that brings new transportation choices to rural and disadvantaged communities while supporting local commerce.
In recent years, Deerfield has experienced increased climate change-driven flooding from nearby rivers, including the Deerfield River, the Connecticut River, and the Bloody Brook. The project incorporates environmental engineering designed to mitigate and adapt to the effects of flooding and climate, including the installation of permeable asphalt and rain gardens, planting of native trees, grasses, and shrubs, and the creation of new greenspace in the center of Deerfield.
The Biden-Harris administration’s CFI Grant Program is expanding EV infrastructure nationwide. It offers grants for projects that complement and expand upon the initiatives of the NEVI program in urban, rural, and disadvantaged and low-income communities. So far, the CFI Grant Program has allocated over $1 billion to nearly 100 projects across the US, encouraging private investments and expanding the EV charging network to make EV ownership more practical and convenient.
Read more: The US reaches milestone of 200,000+ public EV charging ports
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Kia’s upcoming EV4 electric sedan was just spotted testing in the US for the first time. The low-cost EV is expected to make its big debut by the end of the year. Here’s a look at the new model.
The EV4 will round out Kia’s new “EVs for all” master plan launched last year. Kia showcased three new models, the EV3, EV4, and EV5, during its first annual EV Day in October 2023.
During the event, Kia outlined its new global strategy to “lead and accelerate the EV revolution” with a wide range of models priced from $30,000 to $80,000.
Kia plans to rapidly expand its lineup with a series of smaller, lower-priced models. It launched the EV9, its first three-row electric SUV, which is already proving to be a hot seller in the US. Starting at under $55,000, the EV9 is still a great deal compared to others in its class, but Kia plans to go even lower.
The EV3 and EV4 are expected to be among the most affordable electric vehicles when they arrive in the US.
Kia’s new EV4 is now testing in the US
Ahead of its official debut, Kia’s new EV4 sedan was recently caught driving on US streets for the first time.
The latest image from KindelAuto doesn’t reveal much more than what’s been shown in the past, but the fact that it’s now testing in the US is significant.
Kia’s EV3 is already on sale in Korea, starting at around $30,000 (42.08 million won). Earlier this week, the company said its new compact SUV is now available across Europe, starting at around $38,000 (36,000 euros) with a “segment-leading range” of up to 375 miles (WLTP).
Next up will be the EV4. Kia is expected to officially reveal the new EV by the end of the year, with deliveries starting in 2025. It could be as soon as next week at the 2024 LA Auto Show.
The interior will feature Kia’s advanced new ccNC infotainment system with dual 12.3″ navigation and driver display screens. An otherwise minalimalistic design is expected inside.
Kia’s EV4 will also be available in a hatchback variant. Although the hatch is likely aimed at European buyers, it was also recently spotted testing in the US for the first time.
We will learn official prices closer to launch, but the EV4 is expected to start at around $35,000 to $40,000.
Kia is teasing five new vehicles for the US, at least one being a new EV, that will debut at the LA Auto Show next week. Will it be the EV3? EV4?
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