BP Ventures has invested $7 million in smart electric vehicle (EV) charging firm IoTecha.
IoTecha’s technology connects EV chargers with the electricity grid using the Internet of Things (IoT), optimising the charging process by automating payments and delivering cost and potential energy savings to customers.
Richard Bartlett, SVP future mobility & solutions at BP Ventures, said: “IoTecha is at the forefront of the trend towards electrification, and their unique technology combines EV charging with smart connectivity to deliver cost and energy savings. As demand for EVs continues to grow, we are excited to explore how IoTecha can connect with bp’s wider EV infrastructure, in support of our EV charging point targets.”
BP says the investment in IoTecha is aligned with its aim to provide over 70,000 public EV charging points worldwide by 2030. With the global EV infrastructure market set to exceed 55 million chargers in buildings by 2030, charging infrastructure needs to adapt to handle new hardware and increased power demand.
IoTecha’s Intelligent Power Platform, IoT.ON, allows private and fleet vehicles from any manufacturer to communicate with charging stations to signal when they need recharging. The platform gathers information over time, identifying patterns and the energy requirements of each user across all forms of EV charging.
The technology also enables EV owners to sell unused electricity back to the grid through a process known as Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) or bi-directional charging.
Oleg Logvinov, president and CEO of IoTecha, said: “The transportation and electrification industries have developed for the last hundred years without substantial interactions with each other. The rising tide of transportation electrification is rapidly fusing them together. Smart and interoperable charging will make it possible. IoTecha is proud to join the ecosystem of bp ventures and we look forward to supporting the acceleration of decarbonisation through collaboration and co-innovation.”
IoTecha will use this investment to scale their operations through BP’s electrification network. Together, BP and IoTecha will work to accelerate mainstream adoption of EVs and support the transition to more sustainable mobility. As part of the collaboration, Shaun Healey, BP Ventures principal has been appointed to IoTecha’s board of directors.
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