Roam launches second-generation electric bike, seeks to produce 80 units daily

Electric motorbikes are seen at Kenyan EV company Roam Motors’ assembly plant in Nairobi on June 10, 2025. | PHOTO: Dennis Musau/Citizen Digital
Kenyan electric
vehicle (EV) maker Roam launched its second-generation Roam Air motorcycle on Tuesday and announced plans to ramp up production at its assembly plant in Nairobi.
The company develops motorbikes and buses
and its main product has been the Roam Air bike.
Roam says the new
generation motorcycle is lighter than its predecessor to improve battery
efficiency and overall handling, while its frame supports 240 kilograms of load
weight.
Currently, the company
says it makes 20 bikes daily.
“We are building up
the supply chain to get to a point where we can produce 80 bikes a day and
50,000 units a year,” Roam’s Regional Sales Operation Manager Habib Lukaya told
Citizen Digital.
Lukaya said they plan to expand their local
supply chain to ensure at least 70 percent of its components are locally
sourced.
The company says it sources 36 percent of all parts, including body
panels and mechanical auxiliaries, from local manufacturers.
The Roam Air motorcycle targets Kenya’s 3 million boda boda riders whom other players
such as Spiro and eWaka have also taken on with electric motorcycle varieties.
Roam also assembles two buses, although the
production has been minimal. The biggest player in Kenya’s electric bus market
has been BasiGo, which has so far produced just over 50 units for bus operators
in Nairobi.
At the start of last year, Roam secured $24
million (Ksh.3.4 billion at the time) in a Series A debt-equity round led by
Equator Africa and includes investments from At One Ventures, TES Ventures,
Renew Capital, The World We Want, and One Small Planet, among other private and
institutional investors.
Additionally, the U.S. government through
the International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) committed to provide
Roam with an up to $10 million (Ksh.1.45 billion) debt facility.
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