FAR EAST: SOUTH KOREA REPORT
Zio Holdings, a South Korean company engaged in the production and sale of electric motorcycles, says it has completed an electric motorcycle factory in Bac Ninh Province in northern Vietnam.
The factory covers an area of 1,300 m2 and has an annual production capacity of 12,000 units. The factory will receive parts supplied from original brand factories in Vietnam and China and will assemble the parts at ZIO EV’s factory in Vietnam.
The electric bikes to be manufactured at the new factory will be named “EDEN” and “MEVOYEZ,” and will use LFP batteries (lithium-ion iron phosphate batteries). The maximum speed is 55Km/h, and the driving range is over 150km. The selling price is expected to be 30 million VND (approximately 176,000 yen).
The company’s decision to establish a plant in Vietnam is due to the Vietnamese government’s policy to gradually restrict or halt the production, assembly, and import of cars and motorcycles that run on fossil fuels by 2040.
Zio Holdings’ chairman said the company plans to build a plant in southern Vietnam with an annual production capacity of 24,000 units in Q4 2023, followed by an annual production capacity of 400,000 units in 2025. It has an annual sales goal of 250 billion won (about 26 billion yen) in 2024.
Source: VIETJO
PSR Analysis: The EV bikes are priced according to their specifications for sufficient speed and driving range, and the products themselves are considered competitive. This is an attempt to gain a first-mover advantage by entering the market early. Other EV motorcycle makers are expected to follow suit, and intensify their actions in the Southeast Asian region, which is a major motorcycle market. PSR
Akihiro Komuro is Research Analyst, Far East and Southeast Asia, for Power Systems Research
