Log 9 Materials raises $8.5 mn as part of Series A+ round led by Amara Raja

Amara Raja Batteries invests $5 mn; existing investors Exfinity Ventures and Sequoia Capital India's Surge Programme, alongside a clutch of new investors also participate

Manufacturer of industrial and automotive batteries Amara Raja Batteries and a clutch of other investors have invested a total of $8.5 million in Bengaluru-headquartered advance battery-tech startup Log 9 Materials, as part of its series A+ funding round.

Amara Raja Batteries has invested $5 million in an equity partnership and collaboration with Log 9.

Along with Amara Raja, Log 9 has also secured funding from existing investors including Exfinity Ventures and Sequoia Capital India's Surge Programme, alongside a clutch of new investors. The new investors have, along with the existing investors, invested around $8.5 million in the ongoing $10-12 million Series A+ round.

The strategic angels who also participated in this funding round are -- Rajesh Yabaji and Chanakya Hridaya, Co-Founders of logistics industry Unicorn Blackbuck; Rajesh Ramaiah, Partner, Premji Invest; Desikan Sundarajan, MD, Equinor and Faiz Mayalakkara, Director Investments, Emirates Investment Authority. AC Ventures (SEA Frontier Fund LLP) is also among the new investors of Log 9.

The fresh funds raised will be utilized to expand production capacity and business development efforts of Log 9’s latest innovation -- Rapid Charging Battery technology -- which has already completed successful pilots and is due for commercial roll-out in October 2021. Further, these funds will also be utilized to advance the start-up’s Supercapacitor and Aluminum Fuel Cell-based innovations. The start-up plans to set up local cell manufacturing for these technologies under the niche category of the ACC PLI Scheme in the coming years.

Akshay Singhal, Founder & CEO, Log 9 Materials says, “The partnership with ARBL will enable us to propel commercialization at the scale of our Rapid Charging Batteries, which in turn shall play a major role in the future in Log 9 eventually becoming the frontrunner and one of the largest Indian players in advanced cell chemistries. In the upcoming months of 2021, we are looking to take our rapid charging battery-tech to end-users at scale; on the other hand, the development and advancements of our Aluminum Fuel Cells will also continue to happen in parallel -- including pilots and OEM-level vehicular integrations.”

While providing an impetus to the research and development work at ongoing projects of Log 9, ARBL is expected to be the primary partner for scaling up the manufacturing operations of Log9's battery and fuel cell technologies.

Log 9’s newly-developed Rapid Charging Battery Packs solve multiple challenges to expedite 2/3 wheeler EV adoption in India, whereas Log 9’s flagship Aluminum Fuel Cell technology is targeted towards long-haul electric mobility and as a zero-emission alternative to diesel generators.

“This will mark the first in a series of interesting developments that we plan to execute in the future. We believe that Log 9 has made great progress in developing a range of technologies that will prove very promising in emerging mobility applications. I am confident that both entities can derive significant synergies resulting in mutual long-term benefits. This investment is in line with our Core purpose and our values, The Amara Raja Way®,” added Vikramadithya Gourineni.

Chinnu Senthilkumar, General Partner & CTO, Exfinity Venture Partners LLP says, “In the last 18-24 months, Log 9 Materials has made tremendous progress, both on core technology development and strategic OEM business tie-ups. ARBL's anchor participation in the Series A+ round and strategic partnership further validates Log 9's cutting-edge technology solutions and its future commercial potential. ARBL's decades of pioneering experience - New Product launch, leadership in large scale manufacturing, know-how, etc. give a mega boost to Log 9's vision and long-term strategy."

Founded in 2015, Log 9 has applied its core competence in material science to develop pioneering solutions using the wonder material ‘graphene’.