Spiro, the electric motorcycle company that calls itself Africa's largest, has started in Ghana. It launched its first 100 Ekon 450 motorcycles on 20 October, along with the battery-swapping network that keeps them running, according to Disrupt Africa and Techpoint Africa.
The bikes are aimed at commercial riders and delivery fleets. Instead of charging, a rider swaps a flat battery for a charged one at a station, which Spiro says takes about two minutes.
How big Spiro is
- More than 156,000 electric motorcycles on the road in seven countries, the company says.
- Over 2,500 battery-swapping stations, including 11 mega swap stations in Kenya and Rwanda.
- More than 57 million swaps, covering over 3.1 billion kilometres.
- Assembly plants in Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Togo, Cameroon and Benin.
"Our first 100 motorcycles mark the beginning of our ambition to make electric mobility accessible at scale across Ghana," said chief executive Kaushik Burman. Spiro did not give a swap-station count, prices or a rollout timeline for Ghana. It aims to reach 20 African markets and is preparing to enter Ethiopia, Malawi, Mali and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Rules on the way
Ghana is writing the rules as the bikes arrive. On 22 September, the country's Energy Commission said regulations covering EV charging and battery swapping had been laid before Parliament, to set safety standards, licensing and oversight, Techpoint reports.
