Can This Solution for Electric Scooters Be Used for Electric Vehicles?
Jane Lu
· 3 min read
The
electric vehicle
(EV) market continues to expand. Not only are electric cars becoming more popular, but electric trucks
and commercial fleets are also in the works. However, one thing still remains a key hurdle for EVs of all sizes—charging issues. Many consumers are worried about switching to an EV because of range concerns, and not being able to find enough charging stations on long trips. According to
Business Insider
, batteries are also one of the most expensive parts of building an EV.An electric scooter startup is implementing a potential solution to these issues: a battery-swapping model. Could it be a good solution for all EVs?
Gogoro hopes to reinvent transportation
Gogoro is a taiwainese electric scooter startup, and the company is bringing its battery-swapping model to China and India, as reported by Business Insider.
Instead of buying the batteries for your Gogoro Smartscooter EV, customers pay a monthly fee to join Gogoro’s battery-swapping network. This means customers can exchange depleted batteries for charged ones at small stations which are installed around the city.
Gogoro customers can also choose to pay a fixed rate for unlimited swaps. A rider would pay between $10.78 to $43.24 a month. According to Business Insider, the scooter itself costs around $2,161 to $2,886 depending on the model.
Benefits of Gogoro’s battery-swapping model
The battery-swapping model can save costs for consumers. This can increase the uptake of Gogoro’s Smartscooter EVs, as batteries normally account for about 40% of the vehicle’s cost. You also don’t have to wait for your vehicle to charge, or worry about the performance of your battery worsening over time.
Gogoro’s success has sparked numerous conversations in the industry about the possibilities of battery-swapping for the future of electric mobility. The model is not entirely new as some other car brands have experimented with it.
What this means for other electric vehicles
In 2017,
Electrek
reported that Tesla plans to introduce a new battery-swapping machine, which would take less than 15 minutes to swap the car battery. In February, Green Car Reports
revealed that Hyundai
was looking into battery leasing to lower their EV prices. No auto manufacturers have implemented battery leasing or swapping on a large scale, but these solutions are starting to be explored by more companies.Due to the high cost of EVs, they tend to be expensive to insure as well. However,
Jerry
can help you find the cheapest car insurance
from the top name-brand insurance companies and help you switch plans.
