Croatian electrical bike company Greyp Bikes has a brand new majority shareholder: Porsche. The sports activities automotive producer’s enterprise capital arm, Porsche Ventures, has held a stake of round 10 p.c within the e-bike firm since 2018.
Greyp (pronounced just like the fruit) was based Mate Rimac — aka “Croatia’s Elon Musk” — the brainchild behind electrical supercar startup Rimac Automobili. The corporate makes extremely related, extraordinarily highly effective electrical mountain bikes, together with the $10,000 flagship, full-suspension G6. The corporate sells its bikes in Europe and lately launched its US operations primarily based in San Pedro, Calif.
The funding is one other signal of Porsche’s confidence in Rimac’s enterprise prowess. The automaker additionally owns a small stake in Rimac Automobili, which it purchased on the identical time it initially bought shares in Greyp. Rimac lately introduced that it was taking on Bugatti from Porsche’s mum or dad firm, Volkswagen, to type a brand new firm known as Bugatti Rimac.
The elevated funding comes at a time of accelerated development on the earth of e-bikes. Gross sales of e-bikes are rising quicker than conventional bikes in most main markets. The pandemic was a giant issue, with gross sales growing 145 p.c from 2019 to 2020, greater than double the speed of non-motorized bikes, based on the market analysis agency NPD Group.
Porsche characterised the choice to take a controlling curiosity in Greyp as a part of its broader plan to spend money on zero- and low-emission automobiles, together with plug-in hybrid automobiles and the all-electric Porsche Taycan. The corporate has mentioned it is going to have a carbon impartial “stability sheet” by 2030.
Porsche is not any stranger to the world of e-bikes. Earlier this 12 months, the automaker unveiled a pair of high-priced, full-suspension electrical mountain bikes, the Sport and the Cross.
The Sport is a highway bike meant for on a regular basis use, with a full-suspension carbon fiber body, built-in entrance and back lights, Shimano mid-drive motor, and a $10,700 price ticket. The Cross, which is extra for off-roading adventures, sports activities a Shimano mid-drive, carbon fiber body, and full suspension body, along with Magura-MT Path hydraulic disc brakes which are extra-large and “warmth resistant.” It weighs 48.7 kilos and retails for $8,549.
Porsche is the newest firm specializing in combustion engine automobiles to dip a toe into the world of electrical two-wheelers. Typically, while you hear about automotive firms releasing their very own electrical bikes, it’s only a model licensing deal. (Assume Jeep’s e-bike or these Hummer bikes from final decade.) Different occasions, it’s a much-hyped mission that finally ends up falling sufferer to bigger company cost-cutting, like Basic Motors’ Ariv e-bikes. However sometimes, one thing fascinating emerges, like Harley-Davidson’s lately launched Serial 1 e-bikes.