A Japanese consortium of motorbike manufacturers has reached an agreement to standardize swappable batteries, allowing battery sharing and paving the way for increased adoption of electric motorcycles in Japan.
The Swappable Battery Consortium for Electric Motorcycles was established by Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha in April 2019. Since its inception, the consortium has been developing standards for mutual-use swappable batteries while also promoting electric motorcycles as an environmentally friendly and convenient form of mobility.
As environmental awareness increases globally, the consortium believes that “cooperative consideration and promotion within the entire motorcycle industry” is needed to overcome common concerns over the range of electric bikes and long charging times.
Noriaki Abe, Honda’s head of motorcycle and official consortium representative says, “This agreement for the standardization of mutual-use batteries is an achievement made possible through the four Japanese motorcycle manufacturers working together over the past two years.
“I am grateful to all those associated with the consortium and the Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan for their support. While we will continue our cooperation on sharing batteries, we will also be competing with each other to develop attractive products that meet the needs of our customers. Through our efforts in both cooperation and competition, we will work towards the widespread adoption of electric motorcycles to realise a sustainable society.”
Also in the news:
New model suggests the economics of rural charging infrastructure can work
Suncor and ATCO seek fiscal support for potential CCS hydrogen project in Alberta
2020 breakthrough year for EVs in Europe, but growth highly concentrated in a few countries
More radical policies needed to boost uptake of both new and used EVs