In the bustling streets of Nairobi, where the distinctive hum of two-stroke engines provides the soundtrack to daily commerce, a quiet revolution is beginning. Arc Ride, a Kenyan e-mobility startup, has secured $10 million in debt financing from Mirova, a Paris-based sustainable investment manager, to expand its battery-swapping network for electric motorcycles.
This marks not merely another funding announcement, but the first time Mirova’s $282 billion Gigaton Fund has invested in Africa’s electric vehicle sector, a signal that the continent’s transportation transformation is finally attracting serious international capital.
The timing could hardly be more propitious. In Kenya, the number of newly registered motorcycles, commonly used as taxis (boda-boda), was estimated in 2018 at 1.5 million and will likely grow over five million by 2030. These ubiquitous motorcycle taxis known locally as boda bodas represent far more than mere transportation; they are the circulatory system of East Africa’s informal economy, carrying everything from passengers to parcels across cities where public transport remains inadequate.
For Mirova, which manages €33 billion in assets, this deal represents a strategic entry into a market expected to grow by over 10% annually through 2029. The financing is structured as a five-year senior secured loan, enabling Arc Ride to deploy 600 battery-swapping cabinets and 25,000 batteries across Kenya. Yet the implications extend far beyond the arithmetic of charging infrastructure.
Arc Ride’s Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) model addresses one of the most persistent obstacles to electric vehicle adoption in developing markets: the prohibitive upfront cost of batteries. By enabling riders to swap a depleted battery for a fully charged one in minutes, the company eliminates both range anxiety and the capital barrier that has historically limited EV adoption among working-class entrepreneurs.
The economics are compelling for riders, many of whom are gig workers facing fluctuating fuel prices. Electric motorcycles would save the country’s boda bodas (two- and three- wheel motorcycle taxis) up to 30% in operating costs, while each electric motorcycle is estimated to cut about two tonnes of CO₂ emissions annually compared to its petrol counterpart. In a continent where per capita energy use in Africa is very low, while the growth rate of energy use is high, such efficiency gains carry particular significance.
The investment also reflects broader shifts in sustainable finance. Mirova’s use of blended finance to mitigate investment risk signals how development capital is increasingly being deployed to attract private investment in emerging markets. The firm’s local presence in Nairobi played a key role in sourcing and structuring the investment—a reminder that successful climate finance requires on-the-ground expertise as much as capital.
Yet challenges remain formidable. In May 2021, Ecobodaa imported ten electric motorcycles, with five each designated for boda boda and Uber delivery riders. By December 2021, the boda boda motorcycles struggled with heavy loads and rough terrain, highlighting the demanding conditions that electric vehicles must withstand in African markets. Infrastructure constraints, from unreliable electricity grids to limited technical expertise, continue to pose obstacles to widespread adoption.
The broader context makes Arc Ride’s expansion particularly significant. Africa’s transport sector accounts for approximately 14% of the continent’s greenhouse gas emissions, yet traditional development finance has struggled to address mobility challenges at scale. The continent’s youthful population—with their average age being just below 20—represents both a demographic dividend and an environmental imperative for cleaner transportation solutions.
Perhaps most intriguingly, Africa’s electric mobility transition may leapfrog the incremental approach adopted in developed markets. Rather than waiting for comprehensive charging infrastructure, battery-swapping networks like Arc Ride’s could enable rapid EV adoption among commercial users whose economics depend on minimising downtime.
The success of Arc Ride’s model will ultimately depend on achieving the network effects that make battery swapping viable: enough stations to ensure convenience, sufficient demand to justify expansion, and robust enough technology to withstand Africa’s challenging operating environment. If successful, it could provide a template for sustainable transportation across the developing world.
For Joseph Hurst-Croft, Arc Ride’s CEO, the partnership with Mirova represents a “major milestone” in making electric vehicles more accessible and sustainable. For Africa’s millions of boda boda riders, it may represent something more fundamental: the opportunity to participate in the global transition to clean energy while improving their own economic prospects.
The road ahead remains uncertain, but the direction is clear. Africa’s transportation future is being written not in the boardrooms of Detroit or Stuttgart, but in the workshops of Nairobi and the streets where boda bodas weave through traffic, carrying both passengers and the promise of a cleaner tomorrow.
The electric revolution may have begun in Silicon Valley, but its most transformative chapters may yet be written in Africa.
