The Toyota Tsusho Group (TTC) has been collaborating with African individuals and groups under the motto WITH AFRICA FOR AFRICA for some time. On the subject of mobility, Toyota Tsusho Corp. and CFAO group created Mobility 54 Investment SAS in October 2019 as a Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) for Africa with a focus on mobility. In order to investigate the possibility of creating the e-mobility ecosystem in Africa, Mobility 54 has invested in Aceleron and Zembo.
Aceleron is a British company that was established in 2016 to develop what it claims to be the world’s most environmentally friendly battery. Its proprietary technique, which the company claims is simple to install and repair without the need for pricey high-tech machinery, has been developed with poor countries and areas in mind. It goes without saying that this is essential to enabling widespread adoption on the African continent and beyond. Aceleron claims that its compression-based technology, when combined with data tools and software to service the batteries effectively, represents a significant improvement over the traditional method of building batteries, which involves welding cells together and creates a difficult-to-manage waste problem. This lowers replacement costs for customers and guarantees that the battery technology genuinely offsets the carbon emissions incurred during the production and recycling of the battery pack.
Zembo was established in Uganda in 2018 and is a pioneer in the electric motorcycle industry. One of the companies guiding Africa’s transition to electric mobility is Zembo. Low-income motorcycle taxi drivers can purchase inexpensive (PayGo) electric 2-wheelers through Zembo (boda-boda drivers). Zembo provides a battery switching service that enables customers to switch batteries at any of their stations in a matter of minutes. Zembo’s objective is to achieve carbon neutrality and increase the pay for African motorbike taxi drivers. Zembo is actively working to offer a clean substitute for the most popular means of transportation in East Africa to a greener Africa. In the congested metro areas of the continent, the transportation industry is one of the main producers of CO2 emissions.
Zembo has its main office in Kampala, Uganda, and is very focused on the following:
E-motorcycles sell directly to clients and also offer a hire purchase leasing option through external financial institutions, notably Tugende , an asset finance company in Uganda. Electric motorcycles are assembled in Uganda using foreign motorcycle kits and batteries. stations for changing batteries. Zembo develops and manages its own battery swap network, with some headline exchange stations powered by solar photovoltaic energy output.
A Memorandum of Understanding was recently signed by Aceleron, Zembo, Toyota Tsusho, and Mobility 54 during the 8th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD8) to accelerate the growth of the e-mobility sector in Africa. The MOUs’ objectives are to quicken communication between Aceleron, Zembo, and the TTC Group and to investigate possibilities for making a positive impact on carbon neutrality. It will serve as a forum for the exchange of the innovations and knowledge developed there. The partnership between Aceleron and Zembo has already started, under which Aceleron will give Zembo’s electric motorcycles more than 100 batteries. To create a viable e-mobility sector in Africa, this cooperation will be strengthened.
Mobility54 pictures
Do you value the unique reporting and cleantech news coverage on CleanTechnica? Consider becoming an Patreon patron or a CleanTechnica member, supporter, technician, or ambassador. Don’t miss a cleantech story, will ya? Register for daily news updates from CleanTechnica by email. Or follow us on Google News Want to advertise with CleanTechnica, send us a tip, or propose a speaker for our podcast CleanTech Talk? You can reach us here.
