New Zealand EV charging startup Kwetta has raised A$15.8 million (NZ$17.5m/US$10.5m) in a Series A to tackle grid optimisation in the European market to power up electric buses and trucks.
The round was led by the Kiwi outpost of Sydney fund Blackbird, with support from Clean Energy Finance Corporation-backed Virescent Ventures, Icehouse Ventures, and existing investors.
Founded in 2021 as Red Phase Technologies (a 20-year-old Chinese energy company has the same name) Kwetta’s ultra-fast platform, the Prime Grid Gateway, tackles grid constraints to make charging more cost-effective. Headquartered in Napier, 400km southwest of Auckland, the startup’s 30-member team includes a base in Brisbane.
This funding will enable to scale its operations, expand its technology, and take the tech to Europe, with a focus on high-capacity truck and electric bus charging, in Europe’s heavily constrained grid markets.
The new funds come after Ampol’s New Zealand subsidiary, Z Energy, country’s largest fuel retailer, backed the startup in 2023, rolling out first of the chargers, capable of delivering up to 200kW of power, in a pilot program that year. Kwetta now has 39 outlets in Aotearoa, orders for Australia and European interest.
CEO Dustin Murdock said: “This investment will allow us to double down on our world-leading tech advantage, scale faster, and pursue opportunities in markets with significant demand for grid-optimised EV solutions.”
Blackbird’s James Palmer said Kwetta is the only company taking a grid-first view in solving the fast-charging problem.
“With early evidence that buses and trucks are flipping to EV, we think this is a winning strategy and positions them for category leadership in the most valuable segment of the market,” he said.
“I was also struck by the speed and quality of execution. The team went from a clean sheet of paper to 39 charging bays in 2.5 years and with less than US$2.5 million.”
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