Oil and gas giant BP has invested $7 million (£5m) in a smart electric vehicle (EV) charging firm.
US based IoTecha provides “easy-to-use” technology to connect EV chargers with the electricity grid, optimising the process by automating and payments and delivering cost savings to customers.
This investment, which was part of a wider $13.2 million round, is aligned with BP’s aim to provide over 70,000 public EV charging points worldwide by 2030.
With the global EV infrastructure market set to exceed 55 million chargers in buildings by the end of the decade, charging infrastructure needs to adapt to handle increased power demand.
IoTecha’s Intelligent Power Platform – IoT.ON – allows private and fleet vehicles from any manufacturer to communicate swith charging stations to signal when they need power.
The platform gathers information over time, identifying patterns and the energy requirements of each user across all forms of EV charging.
The technology also enables EV owners to sell unused electricity back to the grid through a process known as Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G).
IoTecha will use this investment to scale its operations through BP’s electrification network.
Together, the two companies will work to accelerate mainstream adoption of EVs and support the transition to more sustainable mobility.
This collaboration will be strengthened by the appointment of Shaun Healey, BP ventures principal, to IoTecha’s board of directors.
Richard Bartlett, SVP future mobility & solutions at BP, said: “IoTecha is at the forefront of the trend towards electrification, and their unique technology combines EV charging with smart connectivity to deliver cost and energy savings. As demand for EVs continues to grow, we are excited to explore how IoTecha can connect with bp’s wider EV infrastructure, in support of our EV charging point targets.”
Oleg Logvinov, president and CEO of IoTecha, added: “The transportation and electrification industries have developed for the last hundred years without substantial interactions with each other. The rising tide of transportation electrification is rapidly fusing them together. Smart and interoperable charging will make it possible. IoTecha is proud to join the ecosystem of bp ventures and we look forward to supporting the acceleration of decarbonization through collaboration and co-innovation”.
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