Poland is gaining relevance for e-bike assemblers and a new factory is on the horizon. Backed by NKI, a Chinese manufacturer of home appliances for the global market, Polana Bikes has ambitions to produce 80,000 e-bikes per year when fully up and running.
RTE, Neco, EBFEC, Puky and Van Raam… these are just a handful of the bicycle-related companies who have set up some form of operations in Poland in recent years. NKI Technologies trading as Polana Bikes is the next to be added to the list.
Krakow-based NKI Technologies was established in 2020. This subsidiary of NKI was set-up under the leadership of CEO Tomasz Kowalski who has 11 years’ experience of working for NKI in China. Being set up as an OEM business under the Polana Bikes brand name, there are plans to launch an own e-bike brand next year.
Ambitious plan of 80,000 units per year
The building of the 5127m2 e-bike assembly facility will commence this summer and operations are expected to start in October/November. The factory machinery is being supplied by Holland Mechanics whose Airline will provide 1 line with 21 stations. Initially the factory expects to produce 3,500 e-bikes per month. A second line is already being proposed by mid-2024 which will boost production to 80,000 units per year by the end of 2024. An in-house paint shop is also proposed by Q2 of 2024.
“NKI conducted a full analysis of where to locate this e-bike factory,” CEO Tomasz Kowalski told Bike Europe during Eurobike. “Poland is becoming a large manufacturer and at a lower cost than Portugal and more companies are choosing to locate there which confirms to us that there is a strong supply chain.” All R&D for the company will take place in Poland Kowalski confirmed and 100 employees are expected to be on the payroll before the end of the year. “We have a very ambitious goal of bringing other component manufacturers to Europe,” he confirms, seeing the growing importance of Poland as a production hub.
‘Now is the time’
Although the level of investment was not disclosed, it is clear that NKI is investing heavily in the operation and has already attracted interest from Chinese brands. The company is also busy with attracting industry specialists. Although market conditions have changed heavily since the original idea was conceived, Kowalksi only sees opportunities; “Other companies are being forced to play with prices which will see some going bankrupt. So now is the time to step in as a new player.”
