Kiwi contender Flamingo, which holds council licences in Wellington, Porirua, Palmerston North, Dunedin and Waimakariri, and the multinational HelloRide, backed by Chinese giant Alibaba, confirm they have both applied for Auckland e-scooter rental licences.

HelloRide Kiwi was registered as a local company last month, with Queenstown property developer and tourism operator Min Yang as its sole director and shareholder.

Three-wheeled contender, Singapore-owned Ario, recently awarded a limited out-suburbs licence, has also applied for a full citywide licence (Ario has recently been in a tangle with NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA), which ordered it to disable one of its signature features: riderless self-parking feature – which the firm says has helped to declutter footpaths).

Singapore-owned Neuron – like Flamingo, a former Auckland licence holder – is also in the running. A spokesman said the firm had a policy of not commenting during a tender. Neuron has, however, let rip at Beam in a series of public statements. And the spokesman noted Beam is under investigation by several councils across Australasia. (Here, Wellington also began an audit. A spokesman said earlier today that investigations continue.)

The Uber-backed Lime, which has kept its nose clean over the past two contract periods and recently upgraded its fleet, should be well-positioned to maintain its spot. Given it has tens of thousands of scooters across Australia, Lime could also be well-placed to put extra wheels on Auckland streets in the short term. “No discussions have taken place yet with other providers about making up for the shortfall,” an Auckland Council spokeswoman said.

‘Ready by Monday’

Of the four potential Beam replacements, Ario and HelloRide seem the best-placed to more-or-less immediately fill much of the 1400 scooter hole, while Flamingo is also positioned for a rapid gear-up.

“If Auckland Council requested Ario to plug the gap and keep sustainable urban mobility options available to Aucklanders, we could deploy our safer, smarter scooters as early as Monday next week,” Ario NZ general manager Adam Muirson told the Herald earlier today.

“On top of the 150 three-wheeled, self-balancing scooters we have in operation in Auckland suburbs, we have a significant amount of brand new expansion stock available in our Auckland warehouse that can be deployed to the CBD as early as Monday, covering the recent absence of Beam scooters.

“We have additional shipments of expansion stock that can arrive in Auckland in a matter of weeks, enabling Ario to pick up the slack across the wider city.”

Murison added: “Other providers may have challenges in securing a warehouse – except Lime – and any short-term devices would likely be second-hand devices pulled from other local or international markets.”

“Ario can provide industry-leading scooters with 360-degree sensors and cameras, and a three-wheeled design with a patented suspension system that increases stability and braking safety. Parking in accessways and in the middle of footpaths can be better deterred; and our units are each used more and last longer, meaning less scooters in landfill. Our Auckland CBD warehouse and experienced operations team can handle the transition using Ario’s fleet of customised electric vans for immediate deployment.”

Flamingo co-founder Jacksen Love said: “Should Flamingo be successful in securing a licence or if we are asked to assist in the short term, we are confident that we could begin deployment within weeks and ramp up to full capacity within a few months.”

And a rep for HelloRide, whose global operations include some 3000 e-bikes in Syndey, said: “HelloRide is well equipped to deploy vehicles rapidly in Auckland, should we be awarded a licence or requested to fill the gap left by Beam’s departure.

“We can commit to having the first deployment of scooters on the streets before the current contract end date in November. The remaining vehicles would follow shortly after, ensuring a full deployment well before year-end.”

The local hero

The Wellington-based Flamingo, founded by 20-something entrepreneurs Jacksen Love (ex-BDO) and Nick Hyland (a web developer) was awarded a licence for 735 e-scooters in Auckland in the early delays of the city’s micromoblity revolution.

But Flamingo lost its spot for the 2020-22 licensing round as the council went with an all-multinational line-up, and was unsuccessful in an attempted comeback bid for 2022-24.

Auckland Council didn’t have any criticism of Flamingo. Others were just rated more highly.

In the build-up to the licensing decision, Lime wasn’t shy of sledging Flamingo, with its government relations rep of the time saying “new and small operators present risks” – notwithstanding that Lime’s own scooters had been pulled off Auckland streets in 2019 because of the firm’s substandard response to a safety issue (Lime would be back the following year after it merged with Jump – the two shared a common major backer, Uber).

Flamingo has survived just fine since, with Love and Hyland remaining its single largest shareholders. Today, it has licensed operations with councils in five areas: Wellington, Porirua, Palmerston North, Dunedin and Waimakariri.

“Across these locations, we maintain a carefully managed fleet to ensure we meet local community demand while prioritising safety and sustainability,” Love told the Herald this morning.

“With over five years of experience in New Zealand, including previous operations in Auckland, we’ve developed a deep understanding of the unique needs of each community we serve.

“This experience positions us well to scale up effectively and efficiently should we be granted a licence to operate in Auckland,” Love said.

He added, “Thanks to our philosophy of continuous improvement, Flamingo is financially robust and has achieved consistent profitability.”

E-bikes outside the controversy

Beam’s e-scooter licence cancellation did not affect its e-bike licence, an Auckland Council spokeswoman said.

The Singapore firm is licensed for up to 90 e-bikes in Auckland, but has not deployed any since April 10, according to the council.

Lime is licensed for 350 e-bikes in Auckland, but has not deployed any over the past six months, the spokeswoman said.

Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is the technology editor and a senior business writer.