Additional investments came from certain private funds and the existing investors SHV and DELA.
The funds received will ensure that Lightyear advances in the production of Lightyear 0 and continues to achieve the development milestones for its follow-up model, Lightyear 2.
Lightyear 0 is the world's first solar electric car set to hit roads this year. Lightyear 0 features five square meters of patented, double curved solar arrays, allowing the vehicle to charge itself while commuting or simply parked outdoors, and thus, relieves drivers of charging station dependency and offloads a congested grid. Concurrently, Lightyear has been developing Lightyear 2, the company’s second, high-volume model, with a starting price of EUR 30,000. Already, 10,000 reservations have been placed from leasing and car-sharing companies LeasePlan and MyWheels, each reserving 5,000 respectively. It’s Lightyear's goal to bring Lightyear 2 to the world by 2025, and new funding like this is crucial to its fulfilment.
Lex Hoefsloot, CEO and Co-Founder of Lightyear, said, “In the current market environment, our technology has incredible potential for positive societal influence, so I see investments of this calibre as a testament to Lightyear’s product vision. Thanks to the support of Invest-NL, the entire consortium, and our other investors and strategic partners, Lightyear is well positioned and remains on track to deliver the world’s first solar car and work towards a more sustainable future.”
"Terms like 'disruption' and 'innovation' are easily thrown around these days, but this company and its mission truly raise the bar in this respect and I am convinced they will shape the way we approach mobility", says lead partner Sybren de Beurs.
The team further consisted of Ruud Smits, Harm van Schaijk, Joris Willems, Eva Reinders (M&A / tech team), Teun Struycken, Boudewijn Smit (Finance), Jeroen Boelens and Lauren Delleman (IP).
For more information on Lightyear's vision click here.
Media coverage (among others):
- Lightyear Secures €81 Million in Additional Capital, Welcomes Consortium of Public Investors Anchored by Invest-NL
- Lightyear haalt 81 mln aan nieuw kapitaal op (In Dutch)
- Ook overheid steekt miljoenen in Lightyear (In Dutch)