BasiGo soon to kick-off EV assembly in Kenya

BasiGo is set to kick off assembling electric buses in Kenya. BasiGo CEO Jit Bhattacharya, who co-founded the startup with Jonathan Green (CFO) made the announced and said the delivery process will begin from December.

The plan follows completion of a six months pilot programme in the country’s capital, Nairobi. The 25 and 36-seater capacities buses will have a range of about 250 kilometers, which is enough to cover daily round trips. Aside from being affordable, the buses will also offer a clean cleaner alternative in Kenya’s public transport industry, currently dominated by fossil-fuel buses that are causing massive air-pollution.

Investment

The startup targets to deliver 100 units by end of next year. 15 out of the 100 buses to be delivered have been manufactured using parts from China’s EV maker BYD Automotive. Over the next five years, the startup plans to supply over 1,000 mass transit electric buses to transport operators in the country. BasiGo will further expand its charging infrastructure network, with an initial focus on Nairobi, where its clients are mainly operational.

“As we prepare to deliver the next batch of e-buses to new, we are deploying the necessary charging infrastructure to support that expanded fleet. Currently, all of our customers are Nairobi public service vehicle operators and we are deploying charging infrastructure within the Nairobi area to support their operations. In the future, when we begin delivering to customers operating routes outside of Nairobi, we will expand the reach of our charging network beyond the city,” said Jit Bhattacharya.

“To ensure adoption BasiGo’s Pay-As-You-Drive model makes it possible for bus owners to acquire the electric buses for a similar upfront cost of a diesel one. The operators then pay a $0.17 subscription fee for every kilometer; a fee that covers the leasing of the e-bus battery, charging services and general vehicle maintenance. In this respect, a BasiGo electric bus is always a higher return-on-investment for a bus owner compared to diesel buses. BasiGo’s K6 electric bus comes with an eight-year or 600,000-kilometer battery warranty direct from the manufacturer, BYD Automotive,” explained Bhattacharya.