Ghanaian startup Kofa partners Chinese EV manufacturer to launch e-bikes

TAILG Group signed formal cooperation with a Ghanaian startup, Kofa, a company focusing on battery swap networks, to jointly develop a battery swap electric motorcycle called Jidi, with first orders of the Jidi expected to arrive in Ghana at the end of 2023.

The partnership with TAILG aims to deploy 200,000 electric vehicles and over 5,000 battery swap stations across Africa by 2030. Based on the advantages of Kofa batteries and battery swap networks, the Jidi will reduce rider costs by up to 30 percent. 

Jidi is a battery swap electric motorcycle designed and manufactured for the diverse and growing African market, jointly developed by TAILG Group and Kofa.

The Jidi is designed around Kofa’s extractable battery, which can achieve “unlimited battery range” by being swapped at any Kofa’s Swap & Go sites.

Over the course of the year, Kofa’s swap network will accelerate deployment in Ghana, and by 2024, Kofa will invest in and build swap infrastructure in several new countries. Based on the advantages of Kofa batteries and swap networks, Jidi expects to reduce rider costs by 20–30%.

Jidi’s dual batteries can provide a range of up to 100 km between each battery change, with zero CO2 emissions, low maintenance costs, automatic acceleration, and enhanced torque and acceleration performance, enabling Jidi to reach a maximum speed of 85 km/h. Several technical applications comply with United Nations and EU standards (UN/ECE).

Erik Nygard, CEO of Kofa Technologies, commented;

This is a major milestone that will help accelerate EV adoption across Africa and play a major part in reducing urban pollution; motorcycles alone emit over 50 million tonnes of CO2 annually. TailG is the first major EV OEM entering Africa with a ready solution for scale by partnering with Kofa to provide the battery swap-and-go solution. We are really excited to help enable this.

TAILG also plans to integrate Kofa batteries into a range of new and existing models and support the spread of electric vehicles in Africa. Jidi’s start in Ghana and then launch into other African countries will help TAILG Electric Vehicle run further in global green and low-carbon travel.