The Republic's plan to lower carbon emissions through electrification has hit a road bump as one of the two companies trialling battery swopping technology for electric motorcycles is shelving plans to make it available commercially.
Due to high costs and the complexity of setting up the business to be commercially viable, Mo Batteries will not proceed to launch a battery swopping service for electric motorcycles in 2024 as planned. This comes after a year of testing under a Land Transport Authority (LTA) scheme, The Sunday Times has learnt.
In July 2023, five months after it started the trial, Mo Batteries told ST it was expecting to start commercial operations by the first half of 2024, after the end of the trial.
The company, which is based in Singapore, was the first of two to test battery swopping for electric motorcycles, starting in February 2023. Taiwanese company Gogoro started its test in March 2023.
The special permissions came after the national electric vehicle (EV) charging standards were updated in 2022 to include battery swopping for motorcycles. This makes it possible for companies to operate such services commercially when they fulfil all requirements.
Gogoro has extended the trial by six months and is slated to exit the sandbox by September, LTA said.
"They are currently on track to obtain type approval for their chargers," the authority added. This would allow the chargers to be used commercially.
By the end of Mo Batteries' trial in February, its fleet of six electric motorcycles covered 12,000km and completed 400 battery swops.
The motorbikes can travel between 90km and 120km before each battery change.
The company got a few fleet vehicle users to use the electric motorcycles for two to three months each to get their feedback and test whether the battery swopping solution was able to fit their specific needs.
Esta historia es de la edición April 14, 2024 de The Straits Times.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición April 14, 2024 de The Straits Times.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
MIDFIELD MISHAP RUINS SEND-OFF
Netherlands beat Iceland 4-0 but de Jong, Koopmeiners ruled out of Euro with injuries
Inconsistent Clark seeks momentum at US Open
Defending US Open champion Wyndham Clark is frustrated because he has not played consistently in recent weeks and he is not even sure why practice success is not replicated in competition.
FOREST GOLD IS FIT AGAIN, HAS EYE ON STAMINA TEST
Southern Speed and Great Command also look polished in gallops on training track
Tim Cook controls the iPhone, so he's the new AI kingmaker
Apple’s OpenAl deal means it acknowledges it is behind on Al, but make no mistake, it is temporary outsourcing.
Singapore steps up scrutiny of family offices and hedge funds
Authorities demanding more data, ramping up closures of dormant firms in wake of scandals
Platform helps firms boost IT ops via hybrid multi-cloud solutions
Developed by Nutanix and Dell, it lets them operate different applications from one place
Apple looks to AI as way of reversing fall in iPhone sales
Apple’s developer conference on June 10 was about more than infusing its software with the latest artificial intelligence (AI) technology, including from ChatGPT.
Jail for man who kept scamming victims even while out on bail
He was released on bail three times but kept up cheating spree until kept in remand
Singapore employers turning to Tik Tok to recruit staff
Firms say video-sharing platform allows them to connect with Gen Z talent
Two S'pore firms to test mobile charging service for EVs until 2028
2 others get permits to test battery charging and swopping for electric heavy vehicles