Chetan Maini's SUN Mobility raises $50 mn from Dutch energy giant Vitol

SUN Mobility, a leading provider of energy infrastructure and services for electric vehicles (EVs), announced the successful closure of a $50 million funding round by Vitol, one of the world’s largest independent traders of energy and a significant investor in zero-emission and renewable energy assets globally. This strategic investment by Vitol will enable significant acceleration and expansion of SUN Mobility’s services across India and select global markets.

“We are excited to be working with Vitol, a significant investor in zero-emissions related technology worldwide with a keen understanding of the electric vehicles segment,” said Chetan Maini, co-founder and chairman of SUN Mobility. “As part of SUN Mobility’s long-term strategy to build affordable EV technologies in India, we will be deploying the funds into capacity expansion to meet the high customer demand.”

Maini is known for launching India’s first electric car, the Reva, after founding Reva Electric Car Company in 1996.

Maini said the SUN Mobility’s existing technology partnership with Bosch and the new strategic relationships with Vitol will allow the firm to focus on being a world-class energy solutions provider for electric vehicles. “With its strong track record and experience in zero-emission and renewable energy businesses, we are certain that Vitol will add a huge value to our EV business,” said Maini.

Vitol has been serving the world’s energy market for over 55 years and has committed over $1 billion of capital to sustainable energy projects. With this new funding and strategic support, SUN Mobility plans to expand its footprint to all major cities both by increasing the number of Swap Points, partnering with various OEMs, collaborating with various fleet operators and distributors to introduce newer business models, and adding more vehicles to its ever-expanding Mobility as a Service (MaaS) offering. The company aims to set up 500 SWAP Points in India by the end of 2022 and plans to roll out new products to enhance the swap experience and to further strengthen and expand its leadership in battery swapping across the country.

R Andrew de Pass, head, Renewables, Vitol Inc, said that with over 160 million two and three-wheeler vehicles in India, SUN Mobility’s model has significant potential. Electrifying the largest portion of India’s vehicle fleet through a flexible and cost-effective offering has the potential to reduce urban pollution. “We look forward to working with SUN Mobility as they expand their footprint and deploy their compelling offering into other similar markets with the help of Vitol’s global downstream footprint,” said Pass.

Uday Khemka, co-founder and vice-chairman of SUN Group, said that SUN Mobility is working towards an affordable and accessible EV ecosystem with its Battery Swapping technology, and it could not have wished for a better partner than Vitol. “To unlock SUN Mobility’s next phase of growth it was important to join hands with a company that has a multi-continental presence along with global investments in energy assets and its commitment towards cleaner energy,” said Khemka.  “Vitol will bolster our vision of onboarding 1 million EVs on SUN Mobility’s platform by 2025 and help take Made-in-India EV technology solutions to other emerging countries.”

Founded in 2017, SUN Mobility has created the world’s first global interoperable smart mobility solutions for electric vehicles, that separate the battery from the vehicle, bringing down the upfront cost of electric vehicles, making them financially viable for the first time. The solution involves modular Smart Batteries that are smaller, lighter, and swappable coupled with Quick Interchange Stations that are robust, modular and offer high throughput. The solution is interconnected via Smart Network-- a proprietary cloud-connected Internet of Things (IoT) platform that provides easy access to consumers. It also addresses the issue of long-charging time and range anxiety, as customers can get fully charged batteries swapped in a matter of minutes.