Gogoro has just announced a major milestone, reaching half a million subscribers for its battery swap network. The battery swapping giant produces both a wide range of popular electric scooters and a battery swapping network that is used by several other major players in the electric two-wheeler market. The widespread use of Gogoro’s batteries by other manufacturers has helped it become the de facto standard in battery swapping.
The half-million milestone is made all the more impressive based on the fact that Gogoro currently operates in just one country: its native Taiwan.
There Gogoro has grown into a major force, scooping up over 92% of the electric two-wheeler market since its debut in 2015.
The iconic black and green batteries can be found in thousands of GoStations dotting the country.
In major cities like Taipei, riders are never more than a kilometer (0.6 miles) from one of Gogoro’s battery swap stations.
The stations themselves are easy to use, allowing riders to pull up and swap a nearly empty battery for a fully charged battery in seconds.
The setup also means that owners only need to purchase the scooter and not the batteries, reducing the upfront cost. A subscription for the battery swapping is paid over time, and riders are never left owning an old battery that has been depleted after years of use.
The GoStations also integrate into the local grid and can power themselves in emergencies or provide their stored energy back into the grid to power critical systems nearby.
Gogoro currently sees around 340,000 battery swaps each day and has recorded over 325 million battery swaps since the company began operations in 2015.
Part of Gogoro’s success at becoming the de facto battery swapping standard is the design of its open network. That allows other manufacturers to build electric scooters that use Gogoro’s power plants for energy storage.
Major manufacturers including Yamaha have teamed up with Gogoro, jumpstarting their own electric scooter development and shortening R&D times to get new scooters on the road faster.
Gogoro has joined forces with 10 manufacturers so far. Around 25% of two-wheelers sold in Taipei in the first half of 2022, gas or electric, are powered by Gogoro’s batteries. The company has announced partnerships with major manufacturers in the leading two-wheeler countries of China, India, and Indonesia.
The company is even making advances toward battery improvements like solid-state packs that would see ranges and safety further improved.
As CEO and founder of Gogoro Luke Horace explained:
Gogoro’s half-million battery swapping subscribers is an amazing testament to our growth and momentum as a company, but more importantly it represents 500,000 individual stories and 500,000 people who have chosen to embrace sustainable transportation to lead Taiwan into a sustainable future. Taiwan is an excellent example of how an open battery swapping ecosystem can enable governments, businesses, vehicle makers and riders to embrace sustainable electric transportation.
While Gogoro currently only operates its battery swapping network in Taiwan, the company will make its first westward expansion this year when it begins operations in Tel Aviv, Israel.
The move was first announced back in 2019 before being delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now the battery swapping leader is set to make good on its first international expansion, bringing both its popular 55 mph (90 km/h) electric scooters and its renowned battery swapping network to Israel.
While the company hasn’t yet confirmed specifics on further expansion plans, Tel Aviv will likely serve as a springboard to further European expansion. Riders in North America are likely also hoping that they’ll see Gogoro’s battery swap stations popping up around their cities soon too.
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Author: Micah Toll
Source: Electrek
