Indian all-electric commercial original equipment manufacturer (OEM) EVage said it has secured $28 million (around Rs 207 crore) from the US-based venture capital (VC) firm RedBlue Capital, the company said in a statement.
EVage will use the fresh capital to complete its production-ready factory outside Delhi in the financial year 2022-23 (FY 23) and scale up production. The company also claimed that this is among the largest seed rounds for any Indian startup.
EVage has developed a platform for industry-ready electric vehicles that exceed the quality of comparable options available in India and other emerging markets at far lower costs, passing on the significant total cost of ownership (TCO) savings to its customers, the statement said.
“We’re aggressively hiring from the top automotive and aerospace companies in India and globally and are looking for mission-driven people who understand the value of electrifying the world’s transportation, especially in emerging markets," said Inderveer Singh, Founder and CEO, EVage.
It will manufacture vehicles in modular micro-manufacturing factories, with smaller footprints and fewer capital requirements than traditional automotive OEMs.
The company currently employs around 50 people from both aeronautics and automobile backgrounds at its research and development and robotics centre in Mohali, India.
RedBlue Capital is an early-stage venture capital (VC) firm, backing global startups in the transportation, logistics and energy-transition sectors.
“India is a market with a booming electric vehicle demand, especially in the commercial vehicle segment, but there is a severe supply shortage. EVage fills this exact gap. We’re excited to be partnering with them through our India Green Growth fund," said Olaf Sakkers, General Partner at RedBlue Capital.
Prescott Watson, General Partner at RedBlue Capital and Sakkers will be a part of the company’s board.