bluesmart, which runs a all-electric vehicle (EV) Fleet was expecting to finalize deals with Impact Fund and private equity investors within the next two months, Anmol Jaggi Told.
“BP Ventures already has a stake in bluesmart And will also be one of the major investors in this round. Most of the other funding will come from global investors based in the US and Europe,” he told Reuters on Wednesday.
Jaggi did not disclose the valuation at which the money is being raised, but said valuations of ride-hailing companies like BlueSmart are typically 15-18 times their annual revenue run rate.
BP Ventures did not respond to an email requesting comment.
In September the investment arm of the British oil company invested $13 million in BlueSmart
As part of a $25 million round, its first deal in India. BP Ventures has said it is exploring more opportunities in areas such as EV charging infrastructure, battery swapping and energy storage.
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BlueSmart, which competes with ride-hailing giant Uber Technologies and domestic rival Ola – backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group, says it has a fleet of 1,800 electric cars, mostly .
Jaggi said the company will use the money to buy more EVs, expand its charging infrastructure, invest in technology and launch the service in more Indian cities.
BlueSmart has said that it has a total of 13,500 electric cars with Tata Motors. Jaggi said its fleet also includes electric vehicles from Chinese automaker SAIC Motor Corp-owned MG Motors and China’s BYD Company.
India is pushing automakers to make EVs and wants at least 30% of new car sales to be electric by 2030 – a change it believes could be spearheaded by fleet operators. EVs currently make up a fraction of sales, mainly due to high battery costs and lack of charging infrastructure.