The Italian electric motorcycle maker, which ceased operations in 2024 after entering judicial liquidation, has announced a major revival under new international ownership. And while the Energica name is returning, the company behind it is going to look quite different this time around.
Perhaps the biggest change is where the motorcycles will actually be built.
Energica says motorcycle production is moving to Asia, while design, engineering, research and development, as well as responsibility for technical and quality standards, will remain in Italy. The new manufacturing setup is expected to significantly reduce production costs, allowing Energica to cut motorcycle prices by around 20% compared to its previous models.
That could be a big deal for a company whose motorcycles were widely praised for their performance and technology, but were also firmly positioned at the premium end of the market.
The revival comes after Energica was acquired by Energica Pte. Ltd., a Singapore-based company backed by international private investors. Importantly, much of the technological know-how isn’t disappearing overseas with the manufacturing. Energica says its core engineering and design leadership remains in Italy, including longtime CTO Giampiero Testoni and designer Paolo Imeni.
The first motorcycle to make its comeback will be the Energica Experia, the company’s adventure-oriented electric sport-tourer. After that, Energica plans to progressively restart production of the Ego, Eva Ribelle, and EsseEsse9, eventually bringing its entire previous lineup back to market.
At least initially, those motorcycles will use their existing platforms, which should help Energica get bikes rolling off the production line faster without having to develop and homologate entirely new machines. But upgrades are already planned, including a new battery and improvements to range, efficiency, performance, and reliability.
Energica is also specifically targeting Europe, the United States, and Australia as it rebuilds its dealer and service networks. Existing owners haven’t been forgotten either. The company says service has already resumed and spare-parts shipments have restarted to dealers in several countries.
For anyone who followed the electric motorcycle industry over the last decade, Energica’s disappearance was a particularly painful one. This wasn’t some startup with a couple of renderings and a dream. Energica built some of the highest-performance electric motorcycles on the road and spent four seasons supplying the motorcycles for the FIM MotoE World Cup, experience that helped develop its high-voltage and DC fast-charging technology.
Now the company gets something relatively rare in the motorcycle industry: a second chance.
And if moving production to Asia really can knock around 20% off Energica’s prices while retaining the Italian engineering that made the bikes special in the first place, Energica 2.0 might have a considerably better shot at turning great electric motorcycles into a sustainable business.
Electrek’s Take
It seems like moving toward Asian manufacturing is all but inevitable here. It was the expensive European manufacturing of low-volume motorcycles that weighed so heavily on Energica’s balance sheets in the years up to their financial troubles, and so shifting production to countries with both the expertise and the cost benefits for motorcycle manufacturing simply makes sense.
Energica isn’t alone in discovering the economics of moving electric motorcycle production to Asia. Zero Motorcycles spent years manufacturing its bikes in California before beginning a major shift toward production in the Philippines in 2023, including both complete motorcycles and major subassemblies. Now the company works with multiple factories, including major manufacturers like Zongshen in China, to reduce production costs for its electric motorcycles while still maintaining the ‘designed in California’ marketing angle.
It’s too early to tell how the new strategy will play out for Energica, but the fact that the company is now following a more well-worn trail is a positive sign for those who have spent the last two years hoping for a revival.
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