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Better Place Secures Over $350 Million in Additional Funding

 
1,137 views Feb 4, 2010

Better Place battery-swap demonstration

Better Place battery-swap demonstration

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Better Place is a company most widely known for their batter swapping technique.  The battery swapping idea allows electric vehicles with depleted batteries to pull into the battery swapping station and change out their batteries for fresh ones.  The idea does draw some criticism from those who note that it is not feasible on a large scale.  Regardless of what the critics may say, Better Place is set in their ideas and CEO Shai Agassi proudly talks about the company's future plans.

Agassi makes headlines quite often and has brought a lot of media coverage to the company and that's probably a good things.  With media coverage, a company becomes well known and has a better chance of securing much needed funds and that is exactly what Better Place is looking to do.

Recent investments into the company have been rewarding.  London based banking and finance giant HSBC has signed on to support Better Place with funding over $100 million.  Additional funds accounting for a total of over $200 million recently came in from numerous companies including Morgan Stanley Investment, Lazard Asset Management and Vantage Point Venture Partners.

For Better Place, this series of funds is referred to as Series B financing.  In total, Series B financing brought in $350 million for the company.  Combined with previous early investments into the company which now brings the total to over $800 million in funds.  The company is said to be valued at $1.25 billion, a hefty number for a three year old start-up.

Better Place has displayed fully operational batter swapping stations and is looking to move forward with plans for a full roll-out of its system soon.  In additional to funds already brought in, it's anticipated that the company will still need to raise billions more soon.

Renault has taken a strong interest in the battery swapping idea as have other automakers.  With additional funds, Better Place could make battery swapping a success.

Source:  Edmunds.com





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Comments (4)

  1. By  Chris O Posted: 2/4/2010 11:35am PST

    This is how Shai Agassi intents to make money:"I buy a battery and electricity, and I sell kilometres. On the way I've laid a lot of infrastructure in order to translate one into the other .... And my profit margins are constantly improving and eventually become very large because batteries keep getting cheaper and electricity keeps getting cheaper, while the price of a kilometre increases since there isn't much cheap fuel left in the world." (URL)
    Note: he's talking about a 40-50% profit margin for his investors! Is this the future of electric motoring: battery leasing systems that free us from Big Oil but enslave us to Big Battery?
     
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  2. By Noel Park Posted: 2/4/2010 11:47am PST

    Not my funds, LOL.
     
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  3. By Roy Posted: 2/6/2010 5:40pm PST

    People who sign up will be willing to pay just under gasoline prices instead of about 1/3 if they don't sign up. In return they don't have to pay up front for the expensive battery. So at 10000 miles/year and $3/gal based on a 40mpg equivalent that's a difference of only $500/yr. If the battery lasts 10 years, then total saved is $5000. This translates to BetterPlace's income after paying for electricity. So BP has to provide charge stations, battery swap stations and buy the battery, all for $5k/vehicle and make a profit. I think I must be missing something, like maybe a lease. BP signed an agreement in Denmark, and there they got the government to pay a huge sum that I calculated would come to $80k/vehicle over 10 years. I guess that's where their 40% profit comes from.
     
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  4. By Roy Posted: 2/6/2010 5:45pm PST

    Correction, the $80k/vehicle was not entirely paid by the government as that figure included cost by customer. I think government share was about 70%
     
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