Ducati MotoE V21L enters production By Ben Purvis
Ducati has started manufacturing its first electric motorcycles for the FIM MotoE Championship . The company ' s V21L electric bike might not have an evocative name like ' Panigale ' or ' Desmosedici ', but since appearing a year ago as a one-off prototype , it ' s been developed into a standardised race machine that will replace the Energica Ego as the only model allowed to compete in the MotoE series from 2023 to 2026 . That competition is intended to give Ducati valuable lessons in building and running high-performance electric motorcycles in the heat of competition , providing the company with the knowledge needed to create its first road-going electric models . Initially , 23 of the V21L machines have been made . Of those , 18 will be raced and the other five will act as backup bikes . All have been assembled by hand in a dedicated MotoE section of Ducati ' s race department . Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali said : " The start of production of the Ducati MotoE is a historic moment for our
company . With this project we will be able to study and develop the technologies that will be needed in the future . It is an important area of experimentation , in which we are investing in build know-how , so that we will be ready when battery technology allows the creation of an exciting electric road bike with the weight , performance and range that enthusiasts expect from a Ducati . " We are therefore embarking on this new adventure with the aim of developing the people and skills within the company to shape what the character of a future Ducati electric road bike might be . The MotoE project represents a decisive step for Ducati to contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions on the product side , alongside research into synthetic fuels ( eFuel ) that can reduce the total CO2 emissions of internal combustion engines to zero ." The new bikes will be put through their paces at two three-day tests with the MotoE riders and teams in March and April before the 2023 championship starts at the French GP on 13 May .
Hubless Verge TS Ultra raises bar for electric superbikes By Ben Purvis
Finnish electric motorcycle maker Verge first unwrapped its TS sports bike back in 2019 , but the new TS Ultra ( unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show , at Las Vegas , in January ) finally gives it the performance to match its jaw-dropping appearance by hiking peak power to an astounding 201 hp . That ' s nearly double the amount claimed by the base model , which has just 107 hp , and vastly more than the mid-range TS Pro , which manages 137 hp . It comes from an unique electric motor that ' s built directly into the rear wheel and swingarm , putting power straight to the ground without any sort of transmission .
That rear wheel is hubless , with electromagnets inside the rim , and Verge makes spectacular claims for torque , even when compared to other electric bikes . The base model is said to manage 1000 Nm ( 737 lb-ft ), while both the Pro and Ultra manage a peak of 1200 Nm ( 885 lb-ft ). It ' s worth mentioning that although those numbers seem to be in a different league to figures from conventional , combustion-engined bikes , the torque multiplication of gearing means that in 1st gear a 1000 cc superbike will achieve similar figures at the wheel . The TS Ultra ' s 0- 60 mph time is claimed to be a mere
2.5 seconds , comparable to the best conventional superbikes , but like most electric vehicles , its top speed isn ' t in the same ballpark , with the Verge managing no more than 124 mph ( 200 km / h ). The TS Ultra is a fraction heavier than a comparable ICE bike at 245 kg , but its 20.2 kWh battery is claimed to be good for an impressive 233-mile range ( 375 km ). Once discharged , the battery can be replenished to 80 % capacity in as little as 25 minutes via a DC fast charger . In comparison , the Pro ' s smaller battery needs 35 minutes and the base TS takes 55 minutes . Although generally similar to the original Verge TS in appearance , the Ultra is marked out by a new nose fairing with downforce-generating winglets , plus a single-seat tail unit . Verge currently expects the Pro version to reach customers first , with deliveries of the € 29,900 mid-range machine due to start in May 2023 . The base , € 26,900 TS will follow in September , with the TS Ultra , at € 44,900 , coming in the last quarter of the year .
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Through its venture capital fund BMW i Ventures , the BMW Group has taken a stake in U . S . ( Colorado ) based company Jetti Resources . " The goal is to foster responsible and resource-conserving copper extraction to address rising demand in a more sustainable way . Founded in 2014 , Jetti Resources has developed a pioneering process for copper extraction that utilises previously unused ore from existing copper mines ".
BRP has reported Q3 revenues of CAN $ 2,709m , up + 71 % compared to the same period last year , a record performance for a single quarter in the company ' s history . Normalised EBITDA of $ 488m was up + 94 %. Retail sales for powersports products were + 43 %, with market share gains for SSV unit sales in North America . Normalised diluted EPS of $ 3.64 is an increase of $ 2.16 per share or + 146 % and a record performance for a single quarter ; diluted EPS of $ 1.76 was an increase of $ 0.23 per share , or + 15 %. As BRP ' s expansion activities continue , the quarter saw the Canadian manufacturer acquire 80 % of the outstanding shares of Pinion GmbH , and the purchase of substantially all the assets related to the powersports business of Kongsberg Automotive ASA in Quebec .
New York based Ideanomics ( NASDAQ : IDEX ) secured thirdparty financing to accelerate the U . S . dealer network growth of its subsidiary Energica - the Italian EV manufacturer Energica ' s U . S . dealer network . Energica now has 24 certified dealers in the United States , which accounts for 33 % of product sales . " With a newly expanded manufacturing facility featuring state-of-theart semi-automated assembly lines , Energica will soon be capable of producing up to 2,000 units per year ( and even more soon after ) of all four models : the Ego sport bike , the Eva Ribelle e-fighter , the EsseEsse9 retro style bike and finally the new Experia Green Tourer , which has just begun production .
Sources : AMD , IDN , FT , Reuters , PSB , MPN , BDN , MCN , AP , Bloomberg , MSNW , Electrek , electricmotorcycles . news , RideApart . com , Motor1 . com , Cycle World , motorbikewriter . com
22 INTERNATIONAL DEALER NEWS - FEBRUARY / MARCH 2023