Aberdeen green start-up thinking flat
● Innovative Scots charge point firm secures ‘milestone’ investment round
An Aberdeen start-up venture is set to install its first on-street “flat and flush” vehicle charge points after securing a sevenfigure funding deal.
Trojan Energy, which has agreed a £4.1 million round of seed funding, hopes to solve the issue of charging for electric car owners without access to off-street parking, which is currently a major barrier for uptake of green vehicles, particularly in urban areas.
The firm estimates that ten million people park on the street in the UK and 100 million in Europe.
Its charging points are flat and flush to the pavement, removing the need to sacrifice pedestrian space. Users carry a charging “lance” in their vehicle which is then plugged into the connector point to begin charging.
Trojan’s funding round comprises £1m of investment led by business angel syndicate Equity Gap, “profit with purpose” investor SIS Ventures, Aberdeen-based investment syndicate Alba Equity and the Scottish Investment Bank, the investment arm of Scottish Enterprise.
SIS Ventures will also be helping the business to lock in its social mission of “democratising the transition to low carbon energy”. The equity funding unlocks a further £3.1m from innovation agency Innovate UK.
The funding injection enables the firm to advance testing and certification of the product, with the aim of installing the first 200 units in Brent and Camden councils south of the Border by early 2021.
The company also plans to follow the roll-out of its onstreet product with a similar driveway system for homeowners with off-street parking, eliminating the need for posts or wall boxes to charge at home.
Ian Mackenzie, chief executive of Trojan Energy, said: “This is such an important milestone for Trojan Energy. Ever since we started this business, we have wanted to ensure that the benefits of the low carbon transition can be realised by everyone and not just those with a driveway.
“With this investment, our vision has moved a step closer. The rewards for our customers and our planet will be massive and prove the point that a big idea and great engineering can change the world.”
Fraser Lusty, director Equity Gap, said: “We are pleased to back Trojan Energy and its strong Scottish team who have brought their expertise from the oil and gas sector to partner with industry, energy suppliers and councils to help accelerate the adoption of EV usage in dense urban areas where the technology is needed most.
“Their technology is pivotal to the greater adoption of EVS, the future decarbonising of our transport infrastructure and central to the UK government’s target for net-zero emissions.”
Rob Halliday, fund manager at SIS Ventures, added: “SIS Ventures believes that in the wake of Covid-19 there is an opportunity for Scotland to rebuild an impact economy.
“As scotland’s leading impact investor we are delighted to be playing our part in supporting this innovative mission-led business in its ambition to deliver growth and impact at scale. Trojan Energy is the step change urban EV charging desperately needs.”
Trojan Energy was founded in 2016 to address the challenge of on-street charging.
“The rewards for our customers and our planet will be massive and prove the point that a big idea and great engineering can change the world”
IAN MACKENZIE, TROJAN