Spiro Brings Its Electric Motorcycle Ecosystem To Nigeria

Spiro has the largest fleet of electric motorcycles on the roads in Africa. Spiro now has over 13,000 electric motorbikes and 40,000 swappable batteries in operation across Benin, Togo, Rwanda, and Kenya. Spiro says, to date, riders have collectively driven almost quarter of a billion kilometers. Spiro also says that, so far, nearly 10 million battery swaps have been done from its over 600 battery swap stations in the markets where the company is currently active.

Spiro has now launched its operations in Nigeria, one of Africa’s largest economies. Spiro says this landmark expansion into Nigeria marks a pivotal moment in the electric mobility landscape of Africa’s largest economy. Spiro’s strategic expansion will see Spiro in up to eight of Nigeria’s major provinces, beginning with Abeokuta, and including Ibadan, Lagos, and Abuja, indicating a dedicated effort to electrify the nation’s mobility.

Spiro cites that, in Africa, greenhouse gas emissions from transportation are growing at a rate of 7% each year. Air pollution is the second biggest killer across the continent, associated with heart disease, stroke, and lung cancer. Around 1.1 million people die prematurely from air pollution in Africa each year.

Spiro’s model is centred around battery swapping, allowing riders to use Spiro’s swapping stations, fast and slow chargers, and home charging solutions. In Nigeria, Spiro has announced strategic partnerships with Max, Dot, and Onocon on a shared vision for a cleaner and healthier world, where riders have access to affordable and reliable transportation and cutting edge technology. Dot is a leading digital microfinance institution in Nigeria, democratizing the ownership of electric bikes in the country. Founded in 2021, Dot has quickly amassed a customer base of over 650,000 by providing comprehensive financial services. The partnership with Onocon Royal Limited signifies Spiro’s strategic approach to penetrating the Nigerian market by leveraging local expertise and networks.

Lagos-headquartered MAX describes itself as a technology-enabled company driven by a vision to solve mobility challenges in Africa. MAX has over fourteen branches across Nigeria, Cameroon, and Ghana. It says its work helps to democratise access to vehicle ownership and empower mobility entrepreneurs with financial support services. MAX’s website adds that the company is on a mission to impact people’s lives by revolutionizing their perspective on transportation, ultimately creating positive change  and improving their quality of life. They do this by working with transport operators in the informal sector to help deliver increased income generation, financial inclusion, access to high-quality vehicles, training, support services, insurance, healthcare, emergency response, and other value-added services all aimed at empowering them.

“Our expansion into Nigeria, in strategic partnership with Max, Dot and Omnocon, marks a new chapter for Spiro and the broader EV ecosystem in Nigeria. We’ll deploy a significant number of bikes in our first year in Nigeria, as we enable a lifestyle shift towards cleaner, more sustainable transportation options. Our goal is to electrify mobility across Africa, and Nigeria as Africa’s economic powerhouse represents an important step on that journey,” says Kaushik Burman, CEO of Spiro.

“Spiro’s electric bikes promise a future of reduced environmental impact, economic savings, and improved community health. We’re proud to collaborate on this sustainable venture, setting a green standard for transportation in Nigeria,” says Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State.

Its great to see one of the major players in Africa’s nascent electric mobility sector expanding its operations to a major market such as Nigeria. There is a major opportunity in several African countries to really accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles, thereby improving access to essential transport services on a continent with severely low levels of motorisation. This presents a major opportunity for the majority to leapfrog directly into the age of electric mobility, bypassing the ICE age.

Images courtesy of Spiro