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Honda to Invest $3.4 Billion in Electric Motorcycles by 2030

Honda to Invest $3.4 Billion in Electric Motorcycles by 2030

Honda Motor Co. has set its sights on an electrifying future, announcing a staggering investment of ¥500 billion ($3.4 billion) in its electric motorcycle business by 2030. This substantial investment signals the company’s heightened commitment to the electric vehicle sector, with an ambitious target of achieving 4 million unit sales annually by the same year, an upgrade from the initial goal of 3.5 million units.

Extensive Expansion and Technological Advancements

The multinational corporation plans to introduce an impressive lineup of 30 new electric motorcycle models globally by 2030. To support this expansive vision, Honda is gearing up to initiate dedicated electric motorcycle plants across the globe, commencing operations around 2027. Employing new technology that slashes assembly line lengths by approximately 40%, the company is poised to revolutionize its manufacturing processes for enhanced efficiency.

Honda to Invest $3.4 Billion in Electric Motorcycles by 2030

Image Source: bloomberg.com

Daiki Mihara, head of Honda’s motorcycle electrification development division, emphasized the company’s commitment to making electric motorbikes financially accessible, aiming to match the pricing of internal combustion engine (ICE) models.

Regional Focus and Battery Innovations

Honda’s strategic expansion plans prioritize regions like India and the ASEAN region for bolstering market presence. Highlighting this direction, Mihara hinted at the probability of establishing new production facilities in these key areas.

In an endeavor to stay at the forefront of technological advancements, Honda has been actively developing lithium ferro-phosphate batteries. The company is scheduled to integrate these cutting-edge batteries into its electric motorcycles by 2025. Additionally, Honda aims to diversify its battery portfolio to cater to varying performance and cost requirements, paving the way for a wider array of product variations.

Looking towards the mid- to long-term future, Honda remains committed to exploring batteries with high energy density, including the potential adoption of all-solid-state batteries currently in development. With an ambitious goal of reducing the cost of finished electric motorcycles by a substantial 50%, Honda is driving towards making electric mobility more economically viable.

In its broader strategic framework, Honda aims for an operating profit margin of more than 10% for its motorcycle business by 2030, with electric motorcycles targeting a margin of over 5%. This financial ambition underscores the company’s commitment to both innovation and profitability.

Amidst these electric ambitions, Honda recently announced robust numbers in its automobile segment, recording a notable surge in global output and sales for October, signaling its strong market presence across different vehicular domains.

Soichiro Honda : The Founder of the Honda Motor Company

Some achievers are not only achievers but are also the trendsetters. Those trendsetters bring a revolution in their field and get their name registered in the history for their contribution to the world. One such trendsetter is the Japnese Engineer, Soichiro Honda. It would be difficult to find even a single person who is not aware of Honda Motors or hasn’t seen a Honda vehicle. The owner of the company of 100,000 people, did not have an easy ride, but without struggles, there can’t be any progress.

Early Life

Honda was born to a blacksmith, Gihei and a weaver, Mika, on November 17, 1906. His father ran a bicycle repair business. Honda was never interested in the traditional education and used to forge his family’s stamp on the school grade reports, using a rubber bicycle pedal cover. Honda once went to see a demonstration of an aeroplane, that made him fascinated about machines and grew a love for them.

Soichiro Honda
Image Source: youberelentless.com

Career

Honda’s career did not start very smooth. He was just 15, when he moved to Tokyo, and joined a motor garage, as a mechanic. He worked there for over six years. In 1928, he moved back to his hometown and started his own repair business, at the age of 22. He became more interested in automobiles and motor machines, becoming engaged among new experiments with the engines.

Building Honda Motor Co. Ltd.

In 1937, he started producing piston rings for the major car manufacturing Toyota, under his newly founded company, T?kai Seiki. After two years, the second world war occurred and two of his factory plants, of T?kai Seiki, got destroyed in a US B-29 bomber attack (1944) and in an earthquake (1945). After selling the salvageable remains of the company to Toyota, for ¥450,000, in October 1946, he founded the Honda Technical Research Institute. He became the president of the company and stayed the one until he retired in 1973.

Honda designed a mass-produced engine, that he used in the Type A motorised bicycles, that his company sold till 1951. In 1949, he manufactured the first model in the Dream series of motorcycles, that became a landmark of Japanese Automotive Technology. Just in a few years, his company’s turnover was in billions, and it became an MNC, producing the bestselling bikes, in the world. Soon, his company motorcycles were competing with the sales of Triumph and Harley-Davidson. Honda Motors opened its first abroad plant in the US, in 1959.

Even after he retired from his post of President in 1973, he remained as the director of the company and became the supreme advisor of the company, in 1983.

Personal Life & Death

Honda was married to Sachi Honda till his death. His only son, Hirotoshi Honda, followed his lead and became an entrepreneur. He was the CEO of Mugen Motorsports, that produced original racing vehicles.

Honda was very active as a sports person even at the age of 77. He and his wife loved outdoor activities like golf, hang-gliding, ballooning and skiing. On August 5, 1991, Soichiro Honda died, due to liver failure.

Honda has made an impact on the industry of personal motor vehicles and was listed, among the 25 most intriguing of People magazine, in 1980. He was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, in 1991, and even got established Soichiro Honda Medal by ASME, in his name. The medal is given for the outstanding achievements or significant engineering contributions, in the field of personal transport motor manufacturing.