Indonesia mobility and on-demand platform Gojek and Taiwan battery swapping startup Gogoro on Tuesday announced a strategic partnership to deploy a battery swapping and two-wheel electric vehicle pilot in Jakarta.
The partnership between Gojek’s holding company GoTo Group and Gogoro initially includes two key areas of cooperation. Firstly, GoTo Group is investing in Gogoro’s private investment in public equity (PIPE). Secondly, there will be cooperation between Gojek, Gogoro, and Indonesian state-owned oil and natural gas corporation Pertamina, on a battery swapping and Gogoro Smartscooter pilot scheme in Jakarta.
In September 2021, GoTo invested in the PIPE financing in connection with the business combination that Gogoro entered into with Poema Global Holdings Corp. The transaction is expected to close in early 2022.
The pilot program will consist of 250 Gogoro Smartscooters and four GoStation battery swapping stations that will be located at Pertamina gas stations, according to a statement issued by Gojek and Gogoro.
Both companies plan to scale up the pilot to 5,000 scooters and more battery swap stations in the future.
“One of the greatest challenges of our time, in Indonesia and around the world, is transforming our urban transportation into a new generation of smart and sustainable electric two-wheel vehicles that are accessible and people can embrace. Together with Gojek, and the Indonesian government’s support, we are on a path to making this happen,” said Horace Luke, Gogoro Founder, and Chief Executive Officer.
According to him, Gogoro battery swapping is a new generation of electric fueling that provides an open platform for two-wheel vehicle makers to introduce new electric vehicles that enable fast, safe, and easy to use refueling.
“The partnership between Gojek and Gogoro brings together two like-minded companies that are dedicated to making smart electric transportation the norm throughout Indonesia. Such an ambition can only be achieved if multiple stakeholders work together, so partnerships like this are essential if we are to meet our goals to re-imagine intra-city transport” said Kevin Aluwi, Gojek Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer.
“By combining Gojek’s wide reach in Indonesia with Gogoro’s capabilities, we will be able to accelerate change and share the benefits of electric vehicles with more driver-partners and consumers. This represents a significant step towards our goal of fully electrifying our fleet of vehicles by 2030 and achieving a zero-emissions future,” he added.
The pilot program is also in line with Gojek’s sustainability goals and ongoing efforts to reduce its carbon footprint. In April this year, the group released its first Sustainability Report, where it outlined its plans to achieve Zero Emissions by 2030, including transitioning its fleet to 100 percent electric vehicles. As part of this, Gojek is actively exploring ways to develop a comprehensive electric vehicle ecosystem, by leveraging technology to address the barriers to adoption for driver-partners and ensure an optimal consumer experience.
According to the statement, the partnership brings together two of Asia’s most innovative and sustainability-focused technology companies that are committed to introducing a new era of urban transportation.
As the third-largest motorized two-wheel market in the world, Indonesia sees 7 million vehicles sold per year with less than 3 percent electric vehicle penetration.
Founded in 2011, Gogoro has established itself as a global innovation leader in compact electric propulsion, smart battery design, battery swapping, and advanced cloud services that utilize artificial intelligence to manage battery availability and safety. At the heart of Gogoro’s ecosystem is the Gogoro Network, a hyper-efficient battery swapping platform that was recognized by Guidehouse Insights as the leading battery swapping company for lightweight urban vehicles in the world. With more than 400,000 riders and 2,100 battery swapping stations, Gogoro Network is hosting 270,000 daily battery swaps with more than 250 million total battery swaps to date.
In addition to the Gogoro Network, Gogoro also unveiled its award-winning Gogoro Smartscooter in 2015 as the world’s first smart electric two-wheel vehicle. In 2019, it established the Powered by Gogoro Network Program (PBGN) that provides Gogoro’s vehicle maker partners access to Gogoro innovations including its intelligent drivetrains and controllers, components, and smart systems, so they can develop and roll out unique electric vehicles that integrate Gogoro Network battery swapping.
As for Gojek, it was first established in 2010 focusing on courier and motorcycle ride-hailing services. After launching its app in 2015, the group has grown to become the on-demand platform in Southeast Asia, providing access to a wide range of services from transportation, to food delivery, logistics, and many others.
As of March 2021, Gojek’s application has been downloaded more than 190 million times by users across Southeast Asia.