On 26th March 2024 , Africa’s electric bus company, BasiGo has secured a $3 million worth of equity funding from CFAO Group (CFAO) as an investment for a sustainable transportation in Africa.The investment is a joint effort between CFAO Kenya and Mobility54, a corporate arm of CFAO Group,towards accelerating the scale-up of the manufacturing and delivery of electric buses in Kenya and Rwanda.
“We are honored to have CFAO as our partner in the electrification of public transport in Africa,” said Jit Bhattacharya, BasiGo Co-Founder and CEO.
In February 2024, Toyota Tsusho Corporation, CFAO Kenya, and CFAO Motor Kenya jointly signed a Framework Agreement for Collaboration with the Government of Kenya.They pledged to support Kenya achieve carbon neutrality by establishing the green energy value chain, from energy generation to utilization.CFAO is already active in the E-mobility industry in East Africa ,operating in over 40 African countries.
Speaking about the investment, Akira Wada, the Managing Director of CFAO Kenya said the patnership was a start of a new era of investment for both companies.
“This is the start of a new era and through this investment, we are not only supporting the growth of the electric vehicle industry, but also contributing to the development of sustainable green energy value chain that will benefit communities across Africa. We are committed to playing our part in advancing clean energy initiatives and driving progress towards a more sustainable and prosperous future for Africa and beyond.”he said.
Earlier in the year CFAO launched the first dealership for BYD electric cars in Kigali, Rwanda, while BasiGo became the first company to launch electric buses for public transport in Kenya.They produced their first locally assembled electric buses at the Kenya Vehicle Manufacturers (KVM) factory located in Thika.
The partnership aims to produce1,000 locally assembled electric buses in the next three years, creating 300 green manufacturing jobs in Kenya. The company has already received over 500 reservations from bus operators in Nairobi and an additional 100 reservations from bus operators in Kigali, Rwanda.
“As a leader in both the energy and mobility industry in Africa, CFAO recognizes the extraordinary opportunity for electric mobility to transform African economies. With CFAO’s strength and experience in the mobility industry. Customers/operators can trust that BasiGo is ready to deliver competitive, high-quality E-Bus solutions at scale,”added Bhattacharya.
As part of their investment, the two companies have announced that they will jointly explore the expansion of BasiGo’s Pay-As-You-Drive model to new classes of commercial electric vehicles in the future.
