Kawasaki has confirmed that it has purchased a 49.9% share in the revived Bimota brand, and has shown a prototype of the supercharged Kawasaki Ninja H2 powered Tesi H2 which is due to go one sale in the summer of 2020.

The prototype, shown at Milan’s EICMA motorcycle show, features Bimota’s trademark hub-centre steering system, which first appeared in the Ducati powered Tesi of 1991.

Full details of the machine have not been released, but Kawasaki has said that 200 Bimotas are expected to be built in 2020. The well finished prototype on display in Milan featured two Ohlins semi-active suspension rear shock absorbers and a number of Kawasaki parts, including the instruments and switchgear. In addition to the forkless front end, the Tesi H2 features aggressively styled carbon fibre bodywork with a single seat unit and MotoGP style aerodynamic wings.

The Kawasaki H2 Ninja engine already delivers a staggering 227bhp, so it’s unlikely to be further tuned in the Bimota. It won’t be cheap either, but expect full details to emerge in the coming months, as Kawasaki says that it will go on sale in June.

Kawasaki also displayed a prototype electric motorcycle at the Milan show. Based around a chassis derived from their petrol powered midrange Z650, the battery powered bike comes complete with a traditional motorcycle gearbox – something not usually considered necessary with torque laden electric powerplants. Kawasaki showed it fully faired and on a race track in the promotional pictures and video, even though it was stripped down on the stand, with parts mainly coming from the existing parts bin.

Kawasaki suggested that the EV project is more a rolling test bed than a glimpse at an impending new model, however it does show that they are serious in their quest to find alternative to petrol power in the coming years.