More Electric Bikes in Europe
Ballistic E-Bike Kit
More good news for electric bikers come across the channel. The annual Eurobike exhibition in Germany has closed the doors but the buzz is still travelling. Comparing to the previous year all stats and figures are on a rise.
Last year there were only 25 stands directly or indirectly related to the electric bike industry. In 2009 the number has doubled.
Siegfried Neuberger, General Manager of ZIV (German Bicycle Industry association) expressed his excitement saying: “Electric bikes are hot right now.”
And hot they are indeed. In China and in Taiwan there are zillions of electric bikes in operation but that’s another story because e-bikes are cheap in Asia. The average price in Europe (that’s data for Germany and Netherlands) is €1,500. Despite that in just three years (2005 to 2008) e-bike sales have quadrupled. Last year 500,000 units were sold. The expected increase in 2009 - at least 30%.
While many European companies are slow to capitalize on the e-bicycle boom (Britain is re-inventing the tiresome and unsafe single-speed bike instead of developing new ideas), Asian companies seem to have spotted the opportunity.
One of the head-turners on the Eurobike 2009 floor was Ballistic - a Taiwanese company specializing in electric bicycle kits. Now almost any 22″, 26″ and 28″ bike can be converted into a power-assisted runabout. A small brushless 180W motor goes on the front wheel (that’s the most difficult part of the build - new spikes and all that stuff) and gets power from a Li-ion battery that mounts under a baggage rail. Very clever!
More good news for the bicycle industry? It was estimated by our German colleagues that buying power of the wholesalers has actually increased. More deals have been closed during the Eurobike show than the year before. Recession… What recession? Now, how do you feel about power-assisted wheeling?
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