Spiro starts producing electric motors

From the newsletter

Africa’s largest electric motorcycle company, Spiro, yesterday officially launched the continent’s first and largest electric motorcycle motor production line in Kenya. The company reached this milestone with support from VOTOL, a Chinese EV component supplier. Spiro aims to overcome previous supply chain challenges caused by outsourcing.

• The company is paving the way for the development of a local EV supply chain and skills across the region. By doing so, long wait times for motors and components will be reduced, thus, translating delays into increased productivity.

• Kenya offers an ideal location for this facility, as Spiro has already established a manufacturing plant with an annual capacity of 50,000 units. Furthermore, the new production line will support the upcoming plant in Uganda, while supplying other electric motorcycle manufacturers in the region.

More details

• The partnership between Spiro and VOTOL marks an important step towards localising EV manufacturing, reducing dependence on imports, and supporting Kenya’s sustainable mobility ambitions. This move strengthens Kenya’s position as a regional hub for EV production, attracting investment and enhancing supply chain resilience.

• Utilising its expertise in EV components such as controllers, motors, speedometers, and batteries, VOTOL’s collaboration with Spiro is expected to create jobs, drive economic growth, and contribute to carbon emission reductions by promoting the local production of electric motorcycles across Africa.

• “By enabling local motor production, we are fostering technological advancement and environmental sustainability while helping our partners reduce costs and enhance competitiveness in the market,” a VOTOL spokesperson stated during the launching ceremony shown in the photo above.

• This development follows a February 2025 ruling by a Kenyan tribunal, which upheld the Kenya Revenue Authority’s (KRA) decision that e-bike imports with motors integrated into rear wheel assemblies qualify as fully assembled units. As such, they attract higher taxes of 25% import duty and 16% VAT. The ruling sets a regulatory precedent for the classification and taxation of electric motorcycle components, particularly motors.

• By controlling motor production, Spiro secures intellectual property rights, gains access to advanced manufacturing expertise through technology transfer, and can offer customised motor designs suited to African road conditions and rider needs.

• However, Spiro faces risks including potential raw material supply chain disruptions, over-reliance on VOTOL’s technology, currency fluctuations impacting production costs, and the challenge of maintaining consistent quality at scale—factors that could intensify competition with international suppliers.

• Currently, Spiro’s electric motorcycles are fitted with a 4.5 kW mid-drive motor delivering a peak power of 7.5 kW, offering a range of up to 160 kilometres per charge, powered by either two 2 kWh batteries or a single 3.4 kWh battery.

Our take

• Spiro’s integrated supply chain strategy, inspired by Tesla’s model of manufacturing key components in-house, enhances quality control, cost efficiency, and resilience—giving it a strong competitive edge in Africa’s EV market.

• The company has 40,000 active batteries across Africa, which have a total power output of 100 MW. However, it should consider making its own batteries to secure its supply chain, reduce costs, and strengthen its position as Africa’s leader in electric motorcycles. 

• With a planned 100,000-unit annual capacity factory in Nigeria to serve West Africa,it is likely that the next motor production facility will be set up there. However, Spiro’s expansion should incorporate calculated risks to sustain long-term market dominance.