Jakarta – To boost public interest in converting to electric motorbikes, the government offers the concept of battery rental. This is because battery rental can cut conservation costs by up to Rp 8 million (USD 530).
Senda Hurmuzan Kanam, Head of the Center for Electricity Survey and Testing, New, Renewable Energy, and Energy Conservation (BBSP KEBTKE), said that with the previous government assistance programme of Rp 7 million (USD 464), it is estimated that people only need to pay approximately Rp 2 million (USD 133) to convert fuel motors to electric motors.
“Of the Rp15 million (USD 995) conversion cost, Rp 7 million have received government assistance. The remaining Rp 8 million is because the biggest component is the battery, around Rp 7 million to Rp 8 million,” Kanam said in an official statement.
According to him, the battery swap rental policy relieves the public because they do not need to pay up to Rp 8 million. The difference that the public must pay is only around Rp 1 million to Rp 2 million. This is because the battery has been provided through a swap by a workshop that cooperates with the battery swap operator.
“This battery rental scheme has been running in Bali,” he added.
Kanam said the estimated cost for electric motorbike battery rental is around Rp 300,000 per month or Rp 10,000 per day. Thus, people can exchange without having to pay for electricity.
Angga, a representative of Electric Wheel, one of the battery swap facility providers, said that currently, in Bali, there are 22 battery operators under the swap.id and Oyka brands. Among them are Alfamart, Coco Mart, Plaza Renon, and Circle K.
“If swap.id already has 100 in Circle K but still in the Sarbagita area, if Oyka wants to have 40 outlets in Sarbagita even to Buleleng. So for friends in Bali, if you want to go home to Buleleng, Lengkung, Bangli and Tabanan, it is safe because there is no battery drop. So the distance is unlimited,” said Angga.
Going forward, the battery rental scheme is expected to increase public interest in participating in the electric motorbike conversion programme so that it will be able to support the government’s target of 50,000 units of converted motorbikes by 2023 and 150,000 units by 2024. (Hartatik)
