Hon Hai-Gogoro partnership to scale up electric scooters in India, China

Multinational electronics contract manufacturer Hon Hai Precision announced a partnership with Taiwan's electric scooter maker Gogoro on Wednesday, marking a significant advancement in terms of expanding business operations on both sides.

Hon Hai will be in charge of OEM manufacturing for Gogoro by setting up factories in China and India, including scooters, Gogoro's battery-swapping system, and more. In addition, the alliance will enable Hon Hai to leverage its operations in many EV markets, such as scooters, three, four, and six-wheeled vehicles, putting the conglomerate one step further to achieve 10% gross margins.

In a statement, the cooperation between Hon Hai and Gogoro will oversee the aforementioned battery-swapping system, vehicle production, and manufacturing, as Hon Hai will be able to leverage its vast manufacturing experience and resources, as well as factory management experience. On the other hand, Gogoro will focus on product design, R&D, branding, expanding distribution channels, and customer services. In addition, the partnership will effectively resolve one of the production issues Gogoro has faced regarding its ambitions to expand overseas.

Gogoro reportedly aimed to improve its European market share by collaborating with local auto parts brands to develop shared scooters. Recently, the electric scooter maker has its eyes on India and China. Hon Hai has not ruled out setting up production lines in those two countries under its subsidiaries based there to scale up manufacturing.

Earlier this year in April, Gogoro had already signed a partnership with India's biggest scooter manufacturer, Hero MotoCorp. Both companies will co-manage and invest in a new battery-swapping network company, develop the local brand Hero, and powered by Gogoro Network scooters.