Taiwan's Gogoro to sell e-scooters in Singapore in Q4

Taipei, July 20 (CNA) Gogoro Inc., Taiwan-based e-scooter brand and battery developer, is scheduled to kick off commercial availability of three e-scooter models and battery swapping services in Singapore in the fourth quarter of this year.

Gogoro said in a statement released on Thursday that it plans to launch its commercial operations in the city state through an exclusive distribution partnership with Cycle & Carriage, a regional automotive group founded in Kuala Lumpur in 1899.

The e-scooter brand said the announcement came after a successful sandbox pilot previously awarded by Singapore's Land Transport Authority.

According to Gogoro, starting from the fourth quarter, Cycle & Carriage will launch Gogoro's three Smartscooter models -- Gogoro SuperSport, Gogoro Premium and Gogoro Viva Mix -- in Singapore.

In addition, Cycle & Carriage has partnered with Shell Recharge to launch Gogoro's battery swapping GoStations at Shell service stations in Singapore, Gogoro said.

The first Shell-based GoStation is slated to be completed by August, and more are expected at Shell stations across the city-state over the next two years, Gogoro added.

Gogoro said it and Cycle & Carriage have teamed up with food delivery platform foodpanda to launch a trial of Gogoro's Smartscooters and battery-swapping platform to gain insights in sustainable mobility solutions in Singapore.

The pilot project, scheduled to be completed by September, has received positive feedback on the performance of the Smartscooters with high satisfaction scores for their speed, lack of heat, silent ride, and minimal vibrations, it added.

"After working closely with Singapore's Land Transport Authority to secure a permit to launch our battery swapping platform in Singapore, I am pleased to announce that Gogoro is now certified to operate in Singapore," Horace Luke (陸學森), founder and CEO of Gogoro, said in the statement.

"This certification is a testament to how safe, smart, reliable and eco-friendly Gogoro battery swapping is," Luke added.

For its part, Cycle & Carriage said although battery swapping technology and two-wheel electric vehicles are in their early stage in Singapore, its partnership with Gogoro will accelerate growth.

Cycle & Carriage, a member of the Jardine Cycle & Carriage Group, distributes, retails, and provides aftersales services for passenger cars as well as commercial vehicles in Singapore, Malaysia and Myanmar, according to Gogoro.