Lancaster EV charging business completes £8.7m funding raise
Lancaster-based electric vehicle charging platform Fuuse has raised £8.7m in a funding round and will grow its team to 80 this year.
The investment is designed to fund growth in the UK and Ireland and has come from lead investor YFM Equity Partners, existing investors Par Equity and an angel syndicate.
Fuuse is looking grow its team by a further 17 staff in 2024, taking the team to close to 80. One key focus will be on developing its customer support centre, providing a consistently high-level of support for charge point operators and their drivers.
Based in Lancaster and employing over 60 staff, Fuuse serves over 750 clients and over 70,000 active users.
It also processes enough electricity each year to power the whole of the UK for an hour, as well as processing millions in charging payments.
The new investment will be focused on building the network and providing additional products and services.
Clients include SSE, Scottish Power, British Airways, Siemens, United Utilities and Arnold Clark.
Founder Michael Gibson told theBusinessDesk.com that providing support services for EV drivers is an important part of the offer.
“Trust and reliability is key to the transition to electric vehicles. In an early market there are always going to be challenges, but companies investing substantial sums in electric vehicles and the related charging infrastructure need the surety that the charging infrastructure is working as effectively as possible, the driver has a seamless process, and costs are optimised.
“Fuuse already provides extensive support services, but for business critical infrastructure, such as blue light services, public transport and delivery, the demand is evolving as electric fleets grow,” he said.
According to Fuuse, the role of government is crucial to the evolution of the electric vehicle industry. While the UK government has done a lot of work, particularly through the Office of Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV), Fuuse believes more can be done.
Says Gibson, “The good work in the UK around adoption and infrastructure now needs to be stepped up by the next government.
“A clear industrial strategy and policy framework to develop a home-grown EV supply chain in the UK is vital; a reduction in VAT to 5%, the same as domestic electricity, on commercial charging will empower adoption and growth; and a reversal of the decision to move the end of the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles to 2035 will lead to increased domestic and international investment, as well as reducing CO2 emissions and air pollution.”
Fuuse is also a partner in several grant-funded projects to optimise energy consumption and reduce costs through bi-directional charging or vehicle-to-grid (V2G).
On the investment Gibson said “YFM’s experience of working with innovation-led businesses has proved invaluable. The team immediately understood our vision and recognised our potential. With the backing of YFM, Par and our angel investors, we can continue to curate the future of EV infrastructure and help more customers to deliver an optimised, reliable and trusted EV charging experience.”
Andy Thomas, YFM Partner, added: “The software is designed to constantly evolve, helping to futureproof EV charging infrastructure. It’s a comprehensive product that can serve the differing needs of a range of customers.”
The majority of Par’s investment was provided through a new Scale-Up Fund, designed to support new technologies emerging from the North.
Alastair Moore, Senior Investment Manager at Par Equity, said “Since we first partnered with Fuuse in 2022, the company has seen dramatic growth, establishing itself as a market leader in the UK providing a robust, reliable software solution across the UK and Irish EV infrastructure and building a fantastic platform for international expansion.”
Photo above: Andy Thomas (YFM), Sunny Nagi (Par Equity), Will Maden (Fuuse COO), Michael Gibson (Fuuse CEO) and Connie Smith (YFM).
