Indonesia is the most important market in the world that doesn’t get adequate analysis.
Mea culpa.
We analysts often look at Indonesia, dump it together with ASEAN, and feel happy in presenting a lumpy analysis of the entire region because everyone rides Bebeks / Scubeks. But that’s far from the truth.
Indonesia is the most important country in ASEAN, as big as the next four ASEAN markets (Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Phillippines) combined. At 6.33m in sales in 2024, it is the third biggest two-wheeler market in the world, after India and China.
Yet, Indonesia does not even register when it comes to electric two-wheelers. The penetration is low. The start-ups are just starting up, and there is no outlier today. Some promising startups showed up at the ongoing Indonesia International Motor Show (IIMS).
Broad observations:
There are multiple startups in Indonesia that have already launched electric scooters in the market.
The country’s two-wheeled evolution traces its history to the Honda Cub, and large wheel mopeds and scooters are popular here.
Large wheel mopeds are called Bebeks. Large wheeled scooters are called Scubeks. The only way you can differentiate between Scubeks and Bebeks is the mounting of the engine – to the frame in Bebeks and to the swingarm in Scubeks.
The most popular ICE Scubeks are the Honda Vario and Beat, both with 14″ wheels, front and rear.
As a result, almost all startups have developed street-maxi (pseudo-touring) scooters with 14″ wheels. The street maxi format helps package more battery and maintains the large wheel sizes the country prefers.
ALVA (Ilectra Motor Group)
ALVA is the most important startup in the Indonesian E2W scene. The brand is owned by Ilectra Motor Group, part of the green energy group, Indika Energy. That makes ALVA perhaps the best-funded E2W startup in the country.
In January 2023, Damon Motors announced an investment from Indika Energy for the co-development of an emerging markets motorcycle platform and the distribution of Damon motorcycles in Indonesia. That is unlikely to get any traction now.
The N3 is the entry-level street-maxi scooter from ALVA. This comes with a 1.8 kWh battery pack and a top speed of 80 kph.
The Cervo is the larger maxi-scooter from ALVA. It rides on 14″ wheels, front and rear, on a 1343 mm wheelbase. Power comes from a mid-drive motor with a 9.8 kW peak.
The Cervo is energized with two battery packs, each of 1.8 kWh. The company claims a 103 kph top speed and 125 km range.
The ALVA One is the third scooter in the range, also in the street-maxi format. Energy comes from a removable 2.7 kWh battery pack. The removable is a bit iffy, considering the pack weighs 18 kg.
Charged Asia
Charged Asia is deploying Vmoto scooters in Indonesia under the Charged brand. The company has investments from Vmoto in the form of credit offsets on Vmoto scooters and batteries. The Australia-listed, Shanghai-based manufacturer holds an 8% equity share in Charged.
At IIMS, Charged launched the Baycat scooter, which is a rebadged Vmoto CITI scooter.
Maka Motors
Maka Motors has developed the Cavalary maxi scooter. This rides on 14″ wheels, front and rear, on a 1345 mm wheelbase.
Power comes from an in-house developed 9 kW hub motor energized with a 4.0 kWh LFP fixed battery. The company claims a 105 kph top speed and a 160 km range. For a maxi-street scooter, the curb weight of 132.6 kg is pretty competitive.
Indomobil Motor
The Indomobil Group has interests in automotive distribution and dealerships for multiple brands, including H-D, Audi, VW, Suzuki, Nissan and Volvo. The group also operates a finance arm. Indomobil eMotor is their electric scooter startup, and the Adora Scubek-style commuter scooter is the only model on offer.
The Adora rides on 14″ wheels, front and rear, on a 1322 mm wheelbase. Power comes from a 3 kW hub motor, and energy is supplied from a 2.46 kWh battery pack. The scooter is priced at IDR 24.5m (USD 1510).
Yadea
The world’s largest manufacturer of E2Ws already has a strong presence in Indonesia. We estimate that they are the largest player in Indonesia. At IIMS, Yadea launched the Velax, an electric Scubek riding on 14″ wheels, front and rear.
The Velax is a basic Scubek if you look at the motors on offer – 2 kW and 3 kW hub motors. However, Yadea offers a choice of graphene batteries, NMC batteries, LFP, and LFP with fast charging as options.
Allied Harvest
Allied Harvest Indonesia is owned by a Singapore-based green investment fund of the same name. They have developed the Zeus e-trike with both open and box formats. Power is from a 2.5 kW BLDC hub motor, and the trike carries a 3.6 kWh NMC battery pack.
