Yamaha Motor and Hero Motors Company Sign Agreement for New e-Bike Hub-mounted drive unit Manufacturing Joint Venture ― Building e-Bike Hub-mounted drive units in India to supply the growing global market ―

October 29, 2021

IWATA, October 29, 2021—Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. (Tokyo: 7272) announced today that it has signed an agreement with Hero Motors Limited —which owns Hero Cycles, India’s largest bicycle manufacturer—to establish a joint venture company for the manufacture of Hub-mounted drive units for electrically power-assisted bicycles (e-Bikes). The joint venture is scheduled to be established by the end of this November, with Yamaha Motor holding a 10% stake and Hero Motors holding the remaining 90%.

Today, Europe is the largest market for e-Bikes and about half of the market’s offerings use hub-mounted drive units that house the electric motor in the center of the drive wheel. As the global market for e-Bikes continues to grow, Yamaha expects the prominence of these hub-mounted drive units to rise accordingly and signed the agreement to establish this joint venture with that in mind.

Yamaha currently offers proprietary center-mount drive units, which are set in the middle of the bicycle chassis near the pedals. By adding the hub-mounted drive units manufactured through this joint venture to its portfolio, Yamaha looks to raise the overall strength and capabilities of its e-Bike business and thereby secure future business growth.

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