#TalkBack: E-motorcycles popular in the region, but why have they not taken off here?

Now, Talk Back with Daniel Martin on CNA 938.

This is your show.

It's Talk Back right here on Singapore Today.

Good evening, everybody.

Or good afternoon, depending on when you're listening to me.

Coming up on this edition...

Let's talk e-motorcycles.

Now, I want to be clear.

I'm not specifically talking about e-bikes that people might be using on the park connectors, on the roads, on the, you know, food deliveries.

I'm talking about like e-motorcycles, like actually like an EV replaces a car.

An e-motorcycle replacing an actual motorcycle.

They're gaining ground across parts of Southeast Asia.

And you know, Singapore companies are even tapping into that demand.

Yeah, we've got companies based in Singapore, even started in Singapore, that either manufacture or import e-motorcycles.

For example, there's Singapore-based firm Kilats.

Where in Indonesia, almost 700 electric motorcycles are on the road with Grab in Bali and Bandung.

Another Singapore firm, Charged Asia, has deployed more than 5,000 electric motorcycles in Indonesia.

There are plans to expand into Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia.

But back home, here in Singapore... a very different story.

Considering that these are like Singapore-based companies and they're putting out like hundreds and if not thousands of electronic bikes in Indonesia but then in Singapore, 433.

That's the official number that we have on the roads as of now.

What is the difference? How come we can see demand elsewhere in other countries that are also dealing with the same issues that we have? For example, you know, range, charging facilities, battery swapping options.

You know, motorcycles would have a smaller battery pack and maybe need more frequent charging or maybe need a hot swapping option instead.

These other places like Indonesia are going to face...

And they have longer distances to cover in Indonesia than in Singapore, one would imagine.

So...

If EV cars are now making up something like more than 10% of our car population, and year on year, month on month, we see EV brands dominating the top three lists, how come electric motorcycles so few? What's the hurdle here? Geraldine Yap looked at this as far back as 2023.

Here's what she reported on then.

Now, most of the motorcycles in Singapore are internal combustion engine bikes.

Part of what's holding consumers back is the price tag.

Electric motorbikes cost about 50% more than their fossil fuel guzzling counterparts.

Charging is another issue.

Detachable batteries cannot be charged at home.