New mobility shines more brands looking for their niche in the market electric vehicles. Rivian, Nikola or Lucid are examples that are not well known in Spain but are slowly making a name for themselves in the automotive industry in the USA. And if that happens in cars that all the major manufacturers (like Stellantis) have already stepped into towards electrificationThe same thing happens with motorcycles. The Chinese brand NIU is the leader in the important niche existing in the urban area, with more than 160,000 electric bikes and scooters sold in the first quarter of the year alone. And just like that, many brands are popping up in almost every country. Spain, for example, has more than a dozen people looking for their piece of the pie, two of them with a clear Galician accent: on the one hand, the eezon sector created by VMS from Vigo and focused more on delivery; on the other hand, Velca, founded by Galician Emilio Froján (Caldas de Reis) and last year the leading brand in the sale of electric mopeds in Spain. And if the first has its base of operations in the Valladares industrial area, the second It also aims to finish vigo and your territory. The firm paralyzed “all conversations” with communities interested in hosting their first own assembly plant because “there’s a commitment to Galicia and there’s one from Zona Franca”. “Vigo is definitely the leader”, explains Frojan.
Velca, before the covid pandemic, Froján’s the possibility of creating an electric motorcycle during his stay in Germany. At the end of 2019, it was decided to take a step with four partners and it was launched in February 2020. Despite initial difficulties, the brand gradually grew until it sold more than 400 mopeds last year. Industry leader.
Currently, Velca’s about thirty workers and its units are manufactured in China at two production sites, one in Madrid (with the company Quazzartech) and the other in Poland. The components come mainly from the Asian country for assembly, as do most of the electric motorcycle brands. However, the goal of Froján and his team is to have their own initial assembly center and gradually, get local suppliers One of the essential parts for configuring their best-selling Bora, Calima and Tramontana motorcycles (with Tramontana S variant).
After their explosive growth, several communities came into contact with them. “Andalusia, Castilla y León, Madrid and Navarra stand out, but also Galicia,” explains the young man from Caldas, determined to return home. “We paused all conversations with the rest, because there is a commitment to Galicia and a commitment from the Zona Franca so we can be in Galicia, totally Vigo at the helm”, explains Froján to questions from this newspaper. In fact, she met with delegate David Regades a month ago.
The main reasons explaining this issue are; industrial base has already been created (hand in hand with the automotive industry, mainly Stellantis and Ceaga) and the port of Vigo. “We want to have a strong ally, close to the port, for component imports and of course exports,” says Velca’s CEO, acknowledging that they have “accelerated relations with the Galician public administration” in recent weeks. to make it possible.
1 A start in the middle of a pandemic
The company was born at the end of 2019 and its official launch was just before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in February 2020.
2 Production center and finishing touches
Their units are manufactured at two production sites in China, one in Poland and one in Madrid, where they carry out assembly and finishing touches.
3 Leader in the market and social networks
In 2021, their mopeds were bestsellers in Spain. It is also the most followed electric motorcycle brand on social networks across Europe.
intention to decide by September at the latest and from there the rest of the steps will be specified. Being an assembly plant, initial investment “won’t be too big”, on the order of 1.5 million euros and a dozen jobs would be created. A similar case to the French Dangel converting Stellantis vans into 4x4s on a port ship.
While taking steps “on the way”, Velca continues its plans that include reaching sales of 1,500 mopeds this year, the launch of its electric bikes this week (one of which is already a clear wink to Fisterra, Galicia), and a new capital increase in the coming months.
After landing in Portugal, the brand is now founded in France
Velca is a moped brand sold in Spain, but its eyes have gone beyond our borders. After landing in Portugal, the goal is to grow on the other side of the raia and then make the leap to France, then do the same in Italy and Germany. This was acknowledged by the firm’s CEO, Emilio Froján, in an interview given to FARO after a conference by the Pontevedra Young Entrepreneurs Association (AJE).
The firm has 65 direct inverters and more than 1,500 micro inverters after throwing two equity crowdfunding, closing the second with more than 2 million euros. They are now considering another round of investment that will focus more on Galicia “to become the industrial hub of the company,” as Froján admits. basis of operations.
Source: Informacion
Calvin Turley is an author at “Social Bites”. He is a trendsetter who writes about the latest fashion and entertainment news. With a keen eye for style and a deep understanding of the entertainment industry, Calvin provides engaging and informative articles that keep his readers up-to-date on the latest fashion trends and entertainment happenings.