Investment by Helios and PIDG in SUN Mobility aims to expand battery-swapping technology throughout Africa
SUN Mobility Secures $135 Million Investment for Expansion in Africa and Southeast Asia
SUN Mobility, an Indian energy infrastructure and battery swapping solutions provider, has secured a significant investment of $135 million. This funding round was led by Helios Climate, part of Helios Investment Partners, and the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG). The investment aims to establish Africa's largest battery swapping network for electric vehicles (EVs), focusing on two- and three-wheelers as well as heavy EVs to address rising urbanization and emissions on the continent.
The investment will be used to deploy SUN Mobility's modular, fast, and scalable battery swapping ecosystem across Africa. This approach aims to reduce EV upfront costs by decoupling battery ownership from vehicles, enhance affordability, lower emissions, and support government and fleet decarbonization goals in Africa. The move complements SUN Mobility’s growth strategy in South-East Asia.
Chetan Maini, co-founder and chairman of SUN Mobility, expressed excitement about extending SUN Mobility's proven model to emerging markets such as Africa. Tavraj Banga, a partner at Helios Climate, highlighted that SUN Mobility's interoperable platform facilitates electrification at scale across various vehicle types and manufacturers, making it ideally suited for Africa’s climate-resilient mobility needs.
In addition to Helios Climate and PIDG, SUN Mobility counts investors such as Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL), Vivo Energy, Vitol, and German engineering and technology firm Bosch. The spokesperson for SUN Mobility stated that the investment from Helios and Infraco Asia, which is part of PIDG, will be deployed across all SUN Mobility markets.
SUN Mobility, founded in 2017, operates more than 900 battery swapping stations and powers a fleet of over 50,000 vehicles. The company's interoperable battery technology services two-wheelers, three-wheelers, four-wheelers, and heavy electric vehicles across multiple global OEMs.
The CLEAR Fund, operated by Helios Climate, aims to raise $400 million. This fund has already hit the first close of its climate-focused investment vehicle at $200 million. However, the exact amount invested by Helios in the latest round remains undisclosed.
In India, SUN Mobility has formed a 50:50 joint venture with IOCL, called Indofast Swap Energy, to scale battery swapping networks across India. The company also plans to deploy SUN Mobility's battery swapping network across Africa, starting with Kenya, and across Southeast Asia, starting with the Philippines.
This investment round brings the total capital raised by SUN Mobility over the past year to around Rs 1,171 crore (around $135 million). The PE firm, Helios Investment Partners, has not been mentioned as an investor in Sun Mobility's latest round. The region's rapid urbanization, reliance on two and three-wheelers, and need for robust HEV solutions position it perfectly to leapfrog into clean mobility, according to Mr. Maini.
- SUN Mobility's $135 million investment, led by Helios Climate and PIDG, aims to establish the largest battery swapping network for electric vehicles in Africa, serving not only two- and three-wheelers but also heavy EVs.
- The technology-driven approach of SUN Mobility, which decouples battery ownership from vehicles, is expected to lower emissions, reduce upfront costs of EVs, and support government and fleet decarbonization goals in Africa.
- This investment in SUN Mobility, which also counts Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, Vivo Energy, Vitol, and Bosch as investors, will be used to deploy the company's battery swapping ecosystem across all its markets, including Africa, Southeast Asia, India, and South-East Asia.
