Tembo today is a specialist battery-electric and off-road vehicle company focussed on designing and building ruggedised light electric vehicle solutions for customers across the globe in the mining, infrastructure, utilities, government services (including defence, police, and healthcare), and humanitarian aid sectors.
Tembo e-LV was born out of a business in the Netherlands that specialised in off-road four-wheel drive vehicle customisations for the mining, agricultural, and humanitarian aid sectors. It has since developed light vehicle electrification solutions for off-road, ruggedised, and customised applications, and expanded its global customer base to include the infrastructure and utilities sectors.
The Arowana team identified Tembo as a leading technology provider globally that would fit into the sustainable energy solutions strategy that was being formed for its NASDAQ-listed company, VivoPower. An initial 51% of Tembo was acquired and VivoPower subsequently moved to 100% control following a growth capital injection. Since the full acquisition and integration of Tembo by VivoPower, the strategic focus has been on hyperscaling the business. In less than 12 months, with the support of VivoPower and Arowana team members, Tembo has been able to secure distributorships in six continents, with commitments and orders totalling an estimated US$700m for the next three to five years.
Tembo has also signed a binding letter of intent (LOI) with Toyota Motor Corporation Australia (TMCA) to deliver electric battery solutions for the Toyota Land Cruiser, with an initial focus on off-road applications.