Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda) and GoCimo (formerly known as GoCiklo), a Swedish start-up that offers a rental and sharing service for electric motorcycles with interchangeable batteries, will begin a verification trial of the sharing service of batteries in Malmö, Sweden, in February 2025 for a period of one year.
The purpose of the test is to verify the acceptance of a battery sharing service in Europe, the suitability of a new battery changing station and the commercial viability of the service. The trial will consist of Honda Power Pack Exchanger e: battery exchange stations located at three sites in Malmö.
They will be used to exchange the Honda Mobile Power Pack e: batteries for the EM1 e: electric scooter sold by Honda in Europe. For this test, Honda will supply the hardware and systems, including 30 EM1 e:, 60 Honda Mobile Power Pack e:, and three Honda Power Pack Exchanger e:as well as after-sales service.
Honda Motor and GoCimo working in favor of new technologies
GoCimo was created in 2022 to address the increase in emissions and traffic congestion in the distribution and transportation sectors, due to the growth of the urban logistics market. Since then, GoCimo has operated battery sharing services in two Swedish cities (Stockholm and Gothenburg).
In this verification test, GoCimo will be responsible for the operation of the battery sharing service, customer acquisition and management, and obtaining locations for battery exchange stations. Honda and GoCimo will also evaluate the potential for a long-term collaboration for the European market during the aforementioned test.
Honda has already established battery sharing services in Japan, India, Indonesia and Thailand. This trial in Sweden will mark the fifth country for Honda’s battery sharing services. Starting with this initiative with GoCimo, Honda’s goal is to promote the electrification of motorcycles and the widespread use of swappable batteries in Europe.
In this way, it is possible to expand battery sharing services using Honda products, mainly for professional uses, in the largest European cities, thus supporting the electrification of mobility and contributing to the realization of a low-carbon society. Honda and GoCimo will also evaluate the potential for long-term collaboration in the European market during the test.
Daiki Mihara, Operations Executive, MCPP Elect Biz Dev Unit, Honda Motor Co., Ltd, commented: “Honda is promoting the spread of electric motorcycles globally. The joint battery sharing service verification test with GoCimo will create a new business model for electric motorcycles in Europe, which will expand to the entire European region in the future, to accelerate the spread of electric motorcycles and Honda Mobile Power Pack e:”.
For its part, Mattias TingvallCEO of GoCimo said: “GoCimo has successfully validated the business model of shared battery subscriptions for light vehicles in Europe. Our customers confirm that our service helps them transition to electric vehicles, reducing the investment hurdle, minimizing downtime due to charging and improving safety during the charging process. “This joint verification trial with Honda allows us to continue exploring the potential of the battery sharing services market.”
