UAE electric motorbike company Sulmi plans to build 200 limited-edition e-bikes this year to test the consumer market in the Emirates, founder and chief executive Rashid Al Salmi has said.
The company, which launched the prototype of its first model, the EB-One, for businesses in July 2023, has decided to create premium electric motorbikes for consumers because of strong demand, Mr Al Salmi said.
“We decided to go direct to consumer, D2C, and this is a limited-edition motorbike, 200 only. We call it Founder Edition, and people will be able to have the first properly made automotive product by Emiratis and a multinational team who are from the industry, from design and engineering,” he told The National.
“It's a premium model. It's not very expensive, but it's limited edition, so it could be a good price, but it will be unique.”
While he did not reveal the exact pricing plan, Mr Al Salmi said it would not be more than Dh60,000 ($16,338). The company has started taking bookings, with some slots filled. It plans to have a launch event where riders can road test the bike. No bookings will be taken once the run of 200 is sold out, Mr Al Salmi added.
The bike is fully 3D printed with an advanced manufacturing process, using the labs of Sulmi's partners – the Sharjah Research Technology and Innovation Park and Dubai In5 facilities.
Sulmi, which was founded in 2019 as an automotive research and development company, created the EB-One, the first e-motorbike entirely designed and built in the Emirates, in 2023. The bike, which has a top speed of 150 kph, can travel 300km on a single charge. It is powered by a 10.4kW battery than can be charged from 0 to 80 per cent in an hour. In October 2023, Sharjah Police said it would add the bike to its traffic fleet.
The EB-One has patented its SEU technology (the energy unit), which is related to the battery methodology and energy in design and engineering. The bike also implements AI technologies through the Sulmi Rider Assist System, which is designed to protect the rider from accidents and collects important data.
Mr Al Salmi has been driving an “engineering prototype” of the e-bike, to test the battery technology, drivetrain “and most importantly, the engineering of the frame and subframe (chassis)".
“We have been testing it for more than 14 months, and it's been with me and registered for the road in Dubai for around seven months,” he said.
“In the automotive industry, it requires a lot of iterations [for a vehicle] since we did something unusual in the industry, and, adding to that, it's within the Menat region, where the talent and [automotive industry] ecosystem has a lot of limitations,” Mr Al Salmi said.
The new bikes will be compatible with all European standard chargers, and he has been using them on local roads.
“We are actually from the automotive industry, and … we've been sitting with the delivery guys and customers and what they're concerned about. You can charge it anywhere, and even with a Tesla charger, which is using European standard, not American Standard, which is CCS [combined charging system],” he said.
Global sales of electric passenger vehicles are expected to increase by nearly a third in 2025, a December study by S&P Global found.
Sales of the most popular type of EV are forecast to hit 15.1 million next year, which would be about 30 per cent up on this year's estimated 11.6 million, the New York ratings agency's mobility unit said.
The electric motorbike market, in particular, is projected to rise at a compound annual growth rate of 10.2 per cent between 2022 and 2030, reaching around $109.5 billion, according to Statista.
Mr Al Salmi said he is confident about demand, and has had people approach him when he is on his bike, appreciating its design and enquiring about it.
“We are [hoping] to see the limited-edition bike [on the road] by this year … because it's plug and play,” he said. It uses some of the company’s patented technology, including for the battery, and the vehicles will be assembled locally.
Currently production is 75 per cent to 80 per cent complete, and "now we are working for the next two months to build the production model ready to sell", he said.
“We are focused by this year to sell, build and deliver the 200 bikes. Next year, [we will shift back to] B2B [business to business],” Mr Al Salmi added.
The UAE has been pushing its local manufacturing strategy and launched its Operation 300bn plan in 2021 to position the country as an industrial centre by 2031.
The 10-year strategy focuses on increasing the industrial sector’s contribution to gross domestic product to Dh300 billion by 2031, from Dh133 billion in 2021.
The Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, which is carrying out the plan, will host its annual Make it in the Emirates forum in May, featuring “a record number of exhibiting brands, companies, start-ups, and entrepreneurs”.
The event will highlight the strategic role of advanced technologies, production localisation and cross-country partnerships in manufacturing, the ministry said.
