UPDATED 1 Sept: The EI library in London is temporarily closed to the public, as a precautionary measure in light of the ongoing COVID-19 situation. The Knowledge Service will still be answering email queries via email , or via live chats during working hours (09:15-17:00 GMT). Our e-library is always open for members here: eLibrary , for full-text access to over 200 e-books and millions of articles. Thank you for your patience.
New Energy World
New Energy World embraces the whole energy industry as it connects and converges to address the decarbonisation challenge. It covers progress being made across the industry, from the dynamics under way to reduce emissions in oil and gas, through improvements to the efficiency of energy conversion and use, to cutting-edge initiatives in renewable and low carbon technologies.
Largest electric vehicle start-up in Africa
8/6/2022
News
An e-bike ‘mobility as a service’ (MaaS) offering has been launched in the West African countries of Togo and Benin. Providing the general populace with access to green and affordable electric powered two-wheelers, M Auto has 500 e-bikes on the ground and a further 3,000 ready for market, reportedly making it the largest e-vehicle company on the African continent to date.
The new service will enable Togo and Benin citizens to cultivate an entrepreneurial lifestyle by creating an e-mobility experience that has zero carbon emissions, is affordable at less than $2/day, is digitally enabled and offers an unparalleled mileage range via swappable charging battery stations, explains M Auto.
‘Benin and Togo have the biggest demand for commercial two-wheelers and progressive government policy for domestic manufacturing in the energy transition. M Auto has been welcomed to build manufacturing capacity in the industrial zone that will boost home-grown innovation and sustainable development in the long-term,’ comments company co-founder Yasmeen Jawaharali.
M Auto has begun building its own factories in Togo and Benin that will manufacture e-bikes and batteries exclusively designed for the African market. This will create more jobs and ensure that the process is by Africans for Africans, says the company. Benin and Togo are just the start; with plans to quickly expand into neighbouring markets and further afield.
M Auto is backed by the Africa Transformation and Industrialisation Fund (ATIF), an Africa-focused investment fund. Shegun Adjadi Bakari, a partner at ATIF, believes that net zero cannot be achieved without Africa. He maintains that through the adoption of a clean energy transition which results in job creation, Africans can be lifted out of poverty. ‘Solutions to real-world problems and opportunities for people to step up the income ladder are the only way to get Africa to net zero,’ he says.
