ZunRoof Tech Pvt. Ltd, which operates home-technology firm, has raised $3 million (approximately Rs 22.24 crore at current exchange rates) in its Series A funding.
The funding has been raised from the family office of business conglomerate the Godrej Group, ZunRoof said in a statement.
The investment marks the second bet by the family office of Godrej Group in the startup.
In April last year, it committed $1.2 million (around Rs 8.3 crore) in the company, which focusses on providing smart energy solutions to houses.
Gurugram-based ZunRoof will use the funds for resolving the economic costs of solar rooftops for Indian homes. Company’s co-founder and CEO Pranesh Chaudhary said the startup aims to lay solar roofs on at least one million homes in the next five years.
The firm also plans to hire and retain talent, he said.
“The young dynamic team at ZunRoof has in short time carved out a leadership position in the solar rooftop space and has also identified other exciting growth opportunities,” Godrej Properties executive chairman Pirojsha Godrej said.
ZunRoof was founded in 2016 by Chaudhary and Sushant Sachan, who are both alumni of the Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur. The company designs, installs, and manages solar rooftop plants. Its platform uses computer vision and artificial intelligence to streamline rooftop installation and maintenance for homeowners.
The company, which has a staff strength of more than 150, claims it has so far assessed over 2.5 lakh homes and has installed more than 30,000 rooftop systems in 70 cities, with a cumulative capacity of 15 megawatts.
The bet on the company represents the larger interest in startups operating in the solar space. Investors writing cheques are banking on increasing demand for greener energy and the government push for the same to carry forward demand for these startups’ products and services.
Last month, EverSource Capital – the joint venture of private equity firm Everstone Capital and Lightsource BP – acquired Origin Renewables Pvt. Ltd. Origin, set up by former ICICI Venture executive Manikkan Sangameswaram, provides services for rooftop solar projects, ground-mounted solar farms, and hybrid wind-solar systems to corporate and commercial users.
In January, incubator and accelerator Venture Catalysts invested an undisclosed sum of money in Skilancer Solar Pvt. Ltd, a startup that provides robotic cleaning systems for solar panels of commercial parks and establishments.
