Kejora-SBI Orbit Fund Invests on Bicycle Electric Motorcycle Battery Developer

In order to encourage the growth of electric motor users in the country, PT SWAP Energi Indonesia launched the "SWAP Battery System" innovation. Was founded in 2019, the SWAP Smart System intends to answer the needs of motorcyclists with high mobility who want to switch to electric motorbikes but are reluctant to spend hours charging their motorbike batteries.

In particular, the SWAP Battery System offers a 9-second battery-swapping innovation that has been distributed across hundreds of strategic points in Jakarta. Users no longer need to experience queuing processes such as filling up at gas stations; simply open the SWAP application (with a claimed savings of around 25% compared to gasoline) and immediately exchange batteries at the nearest SWAPPoin. This technology has been adapted by PT Smoot Motor Indonesia through the output of its newest smart electric motor called SMOOT Tempur.

"By switching to SMOOT motorcycles that are environmentally friendly and integrated with the SWAP Battery System, riders don't have to worry when they have to travel long distances on electric motorcycles; they can enjoy savings in daily transportation costs while making a positive contribution through reducing air pollution," PT Smooth Motor Indonesia's Founder and CEO, Irwan Tjahaja said.

Claiming to have a significant difference with other similar service providers, SMOOT is referred to as a "smart" electric motor because it starts from a motor, battery, battery exchange place (SWAPPoin); everything is connected in a SWAP application. SMOOT users can always monitor the latest battery status and also the location of the motor. Nevertheless, for user's convenience and security, SMOOT is equipped with an anti-theft system that can also be accessed through the application when the vehicle is lost or stolen.

Battery can be ordered through the application / SWAP

Investment from Kejora-SBI Orbit Fund

SWAP has received seed funding from Kejora-SBI Orbit Fund, which is a venture capital funding collaboration between Kejora Capital and SBI Holdings. In particular, since its initial launch, Kejora-SBI Orbit Fund intends to invest in startups that focus on the Indonesian market. In its debut, Kejora-SBI Orbit Fund committed to disburse $30 million.

Kejora-SBI Orbit's Executive VP, Richie Wirjan revealed to DailySocial, in the future this SWAP will not only provide solutions for batteries, but also as an energy distribution company.

"We see that the electric vehicle currently used as one use case, then we will also look at logistics related to education and MSMEs. Therefore, we see that SWAP is more than just a battery for motorcycles. This will be the first trial for electric vehicles. In the future, we will see the use cases in several other logistics companies," Richie said.

Electric vehicles is one of the SWAP use cases, which in the future will continue to develop into other sectors such as logistics, education and also support for MSME players," Richie said.

His expectation on this innovation, two-wheeled EV players don't have to create other infrastructure. They simply adopt the 9-second battery swap system from SWAP, therefore, a sharing economy can be achieved between fellow EV players in this ecosystem.

Currently, SWAP continues to communicate with several leading logistics companies in Indonesia, expecting to continue intensifying the adoption of SMOOT smart electric motors in the next 4th quarter.

Electric vehicle growth potential

Although there are still many Indonesian motorcycle users who choose gasoline based over electric ones, it is predicted that electric motorcycles will have positive growth in the future. According to BPS data in 2019, around 112,000,000 motorcycles have made Indonesia the world's 3rd largest motorcycle market, and directly contributed to the high level of air pollution and its impact on public health.

BPS statistics on motorcycle users / Source: BPS

With new electric motorcycle brands continue to emerge, the battery capacity is still relatively small and the performance is minimal, resulting in shorter mileage.

The 9-second battery swap concept offered by SWAP Energy allows drivers to always use the best performing battery without waiting for hours to charge like other electric batteries. PT Swap Energi Indonesia has conducted in-depth research for the development of battery and electric motor technology since 2019.

–Original article is in Indonesian, translated by Kristin Siagian