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Jan 13, 2024

Roam Launches The Roam Hub: A Multi

By Published Roam, a technology company that develops, designs, and deploys electric vehicles tailored for the African continent, launched the first Roam Hub this morning in Nairobi. The Roam Hub is a

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Published

Roam, a technology company that develops, designs, and deploys electric vehicles tailored for the African continent, launched the first Roam Hub this morning in Nairobi. The Roam Hub is a multi-purpose electric motorcycle charging station. Though it is still possible to charge the Roam Air at home, the Roam Hub acts as an ecosystem solution for drivers, providing them with public access to battery charging and battery rental services as they run their day-to-day operations.

Designed with the versatile needs of electric vehicle users in mind, the Roam Hub is specially tailored to meet the demands of boda-boda operators, who are the mainstay of the motorcycle taxi industry in Kenya. The stations are also equipped with spare parts and staffed with trained technicians who can provide maintenance and repair services as needed. In addition to these after-sales services, the Roam Hub sites also serve as public access points for technology and software updates on the Roam Air, making them one-stop-shops for the different needs riders may have.

This launch meets one of the company’s core goals of offering a holistic and hassle-free riding experience to its customers. The Roam Hub charging stations are strategically located at the heart of busy urban areas — namely, Total Energies Lusaka Road (the flagship location), Waiyaki Way, and Ngong Road. The rollout of this dedicated charging network for electric motorcycle riders is an important step in Roam’s vision towards decarbonizing Kenya’s transport sector.

“At Roam, we believe that simplifying the charging experience is essential to electric motorcycle adoption and customer satisfaction,” said Habib Lukaya, Energy & Charging Product Manager.

“We are confident that this hassle-free charging experience is what will eventually turn the boda boda industry electric.”

Romain Petiteau, Head of Energy & Charging at Roam, added, “This is a landmark moment. The launch of the Roam Hub demonstrates our ability to advance our sustainability and electrification goals through a versatile set of charging solutions and technology offerings. With our industry-leading electrification ambitions, we can change the future of electric motorcycles in Kenya.”

The Roam Hub charging stations are equipped with fast chargers capable of charging the Roam Air, the company’s electric motorcycle, in less than an hour. The stations are also powered partly by solar energy and are designed with an interoperability function that allows other electric vehicles from Roam’s partners to be serviced at these locations.

The stations are all-encompassing, offering battery rental services, battery charging, and after-sales services, making the Roam Hub the ultimate solution for the variable needs of electric motorcycle riders.

Roam’s approach for the Roam Hub is quite interesting and allows for flexibility. Electric motorcycle operators can therefore choose to own their own battery and have it charged at the Roam Hub, or they can opt for a battery rental, giving them the option for multiple swaps per day as needed depending on the distance they cover per day. For those that own the batteries, they have the flexibility to charge them at home, and ultimately when coupled with appropriate inverters, these batteries could eventually be used for other productive use cases as well as home backup systems during power outages. It’s great to see charging infrastructure development to support Kenya’s electric motorcycle sector.

Images courtesy of Roam

Remeredzai Joseph Kuhudzai has been fascinated with batteries since he was in primary school. As part of his High School Physics class he had to choose an elective course. He picked the renewable energy course and he has been hooked ever since.At university he continued to explore materials with applications in the energy space and ending up doing a PhD involving the study of radiation damage in High Temperature Gas Cooled Nuclear Reactors. He has since transitioned to work in the Solar and Storage industry and his love for batteries has driven him to obsess about electric vehicles.

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