Solar-powered carmaker Lightyear raises $81M and gears up for production
Summary
Lightyear, a Dutch startup developing a long-range hybrid solar-powered car, today announced that it has raised 81 million ($81 million) as it prepares to begin production of its first vehicle in the coming months.While recent history is littered with examples of prototype solar-powered vehicles, the burgeoning electric car movement has so far been mostly limited to automobiles that need to be plugged into the grid to charge, or hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) that self-charge while driving. A number of companies are pushing to make solar-powered cars a mass-market reality, however, such as Germanys Sono Motors, which recently revealed the final production design of its inaugural solar-electric vehicle, scheduled to launch some time in 2023, and Lightyear, a six-year-old startup that debuted its prototype back in 2019, which had previously raised more than $100 million in funding.Introducing solar-charging to the electric vehicle fray essentially solves two problems in one. Drivers dont have to worry so much about where the nearest charging station is, as the car can top itself up while moving or when parked. And cars can travel farther without having to plug in, with Lightyear promising a range of more than 600 miles on a single full charge. The sooner this technology is adopted, the higher the production volumes, which allows for lower prices for the consumer.Lightyears latest cash injection includes capital from a public consortium of backers that includes Invest-NL, an investment company set up by the Dutch Ministry of Finance in 2020, and private funds from the likes of SHV and Dela.In the current market environment, our technology has incredible potential for positive societal influence, so I see investments of this caliber as a testament to Lightyears product vision, Lightyear CEO and co-founder Lex Hoefsloot said in a statement.