Recently, the intelligent machine system manufacturer Blue Ocean Robotics (蓝海机器人) successfully completed a CNY tens of million B-round financing. The financing was led by Zhejiang Energy Group's Zheneng Fund (浙能基金), with participation from Shenzhen Small & Medium Credit Venture Capital(深圳中小担创投) and other funds. The funds raised in this round will be primarily used to drive further advancement in underlying technology research and development, as well as business expansion.
Blue Ocean Robotics is a high-tech enterprise specializing in the design, integration, implementation, and after-sales service of AGV, RGV, and automated warehousing systems. Their services include providing unmanned handling solutions, AGV vehicles, and accompanying AGV control systems to assist customers in achieving production and warehouse automation construction and transformation.
According to EqualOcean, Blue Ocean Robotics initially focused on hardware products and introduced commercial service robots and AGVs for the automotive industry. Since entering the photovoltaic industry in 2017, the company has shifted its focus to vertical solutions in the fields of photovoltaics, lithium batteries, and other new energy sectors.
Currently, the company has developed three business categories, including flexible manufacturing units such as AMR, intelligent logistics warehousing, and MES. They offer products such as raw material warehouses (feeding machines), workshop logistics (AMR, scheduling systems, buffer machines, and logistics lines), and finished goods warehouses.
In 2023, the company launched new products such as finished goods warehouses and cleaning robots, aiming to provide customers with more comprehensive solutions. In the field of photovoltaic products, Blue Ocean Robotics has already served as a core supplier to leading photovoltaic manufacturers such as Jinkosolar (晶科能源), JA Solar (晶澳太阳能), Zhongrun Solar Technology(中润集团), Canadian Solar (阿特斯太阳能), Chint Group (正泰集团), and JOLYWOOD (中来股份).
The majority of customers in the photovoltaic and lithium battery sectors have a growing demand for expanding production capacity, with a certain entry threshold in the industry. Blue Ocean Robotics has a strong business foundation in the new energy field and enjoys a first-mover advantage after earning the trust of customers.
Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, fluctuations in the industry chain prices, and geopolitical tensions in Europe, the global photovoltaic market continued to experience strong demand. In 2022, the global photovoltaic installed capacity reached 230GW, representing a year-on-year growth of 35.3%, with a cumulative installed capacity of approximately 1156GW.
According to research data from the photovoltaic think tank Solarzoom, China's Longi Green Energy (隆基绿能), Trina Solar(天合光能), JA Solar, JinkoSolar, and Canadian Solar are the top five global photovoltaic component manufacturers, accounting for a combined market share of 61.8%, while all other manufacturers accounted for 38.2%. As a supplier of photovoltaic components to some of these leading companies, Blue Ocean Robotics has broad development prospects.
Blue Ocean Robotics has had previous investors including Hymson Laser Intelligent (海目星), Longsheng Foundation (隆晟基业), and GL Ventures (高瓴创投).Following this financing round, Blue Ocean Robotics will further focus on upgrading fundamental underlying technologies and expanding its business.