Whoosh localizes production of electric scooter components in Russia

MOSCOW. June 19 (Interfax) - Electric scooter and bike sharing service Whoosh (Whoosh Holding LLC) has localized production of components for electric scooters in Russia and expects this to save it about 20% on components in the second half of the year, the company said in a press release.

The company began the project to localize production in the fall of 2022, setting up production of scooter components that need to be replaced most often, including rubber foot mats, grips, grip flanges, decorative plates and other parts. Parts on scooters were replaced for the 2023 season during winter maintenance on Whoosh's fleet.

At present, 30% to 90% of the fleet, depending on the region of Russia, uses the new parts. The parts will soon be used on the scooter fleet in other CIS countries, and next season the company plans to update up to 100% of scooters with parts made in Russia. Whoosh currently has 133,000 scooters and electric bikes in Russia and other CIS countries.

"The project to localize production is showing good economic results. We have managed to achieve significant savings of 10% to 36% for various items, depending on the type of component. Overall we expect to save about 20% of the budget for components in the second half of 2023," Whoosh founder and CEO Dmitry Chuiko was quoted as saying in the press release.

"Thanks to additional improvements in quality and durability of certain components, we forecast that the savings will be even greater over a longer period of time," he said.

Whoosh, a Russian developer of micro mobility solutions and scooter sharing operator, has a presence in Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan and more than 12 million users. The company's shares have been traded on the Moscow Exchange since December 2022.