US-based electric bus manufacturer Proterra secured $140m from investors including carmaker General Motors and energy companies Exelon and Edison Energy, in what it called a ‘series 5’ round.
General Motors and Exelon invested through respective subsidiaries GM Ventures and Constellation Technology Ventures but the round was led by an undisclosed participant that provided $40m, while a further $60m was supplied by undisclosed new investors.
Existing backers including Tao Capital Partners, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB) and 88 Green Ventures also contributed, as did Middle East Venture Partners and Obvious Ventures according to TechCrunch.
Proterra produces electric buses and has sold more than 300 of them to 35 commercial, municipal and university transit agencies in North America. It will use the new funding to scale production of its new Catalyst E2 Series, which can travel up to 350 miles on a single charge.
More precisely, Proterra plans to increase production by 300% at its South Carolina plant, while beginning manufacturing at its Californian factory and hiring new team members in Silicon Valley and Los Angeles.
Proterra has now raised more than $355m in debt and equity financing altogether, having raised $30m in equity and $25m in debt in July 2015. GM Ventures and KPCB co-led a $30m round in mid-2014 that included Constellation Technology Ventures, Tao Invest, Vision Ridge Partners and Hennessey Capital.
Tao Invest had led a $34m series C round in January 2014, while GM Ventures and conglomerate Mitsui were among the participants in a $30m round in 2011 also backed by Vision Ridge Partners and 88 Green Ventures.
Ryan Popple, chief executive of Proterra, said: “The size of the round and the diversity of our investors reflects what we’re seeing around the world as institutions and businesses divest from fossil fuels.
“We thank our existing investors for their support and welcome our new investors as we continue to deliver on the promise of a cleaner future for all communities.”
– Photo courtesy of Proterra