As of the June 30, 2023, Truck Rental has already captured a substantial 10% market share in China. With followers adopting the battery swapping model, the commercial battery-swappable vehicle market is flourishing and holds immense promise.
Truck Rental Logistics Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Truck Rental"), a prominent player in the urban green transportation and battery swap eco-system, recently concluded a substantial Series D funding round, securing a noteworthy sum of CNY 200 million. The funding was exclusively led by Xinchang Chenghe Fund, catapulting Truck Rental's post-investment valuation beyond an impressive CNY 2 billion.
The proceeds is designed to establish a comprehensive smart energy production and R&D center in Xinchang City, Zhejiang. This facility will manufacture various products, including power batteries, energy storage batteries, integrated solar-energy storage-charging-swapping stations, and semi-automatic forklifts. The production center is anticipated to commence operations next year, with a production capacity of approximately 2 GWh.
Established in 2012, Truck Rental stands as a leading Chinese enterprise specializing in new energy exchange commercial vehicle technology. The company has forged deep partnerships with industry giants like SAIC and Futian, and boasts a well-established portfolio of products tailored to the logistics and transportation sector. These offerings include power-changing light trucks, power-changing vans, and power-changing refrigerated vehicles.
Truck Rental's core expertise lies in modular battery development, electric vehicle design, battery production for swapping, green energy storage, and battery swap operations. The utilization of standardized modular batteries across various new energy commercial vehicles translates to substantial cost reductions and enhanced operational efficiency for corporate clients. Notably, their previous funding round in January of this year was spearheaded by the Envision-Sequoia Carbon Neutral Fund.
CEO Huang Fengnan of Truck Rental reported that following the last funding round, they successfully delivered an extensive fleet of battery-swappable commercial vehicles nationwide, exceeding 1,000 units in cumulative deliveries. Beyond serving logistics companies, they have ventured into testing and promotional initiatives with prominent firms such as Sinopharm, Muyuan Foods, and Starbucks. The company anticipates delivering over 5,000 vehicles this year.
In the product realm, Truck Rental is expanding the application of their refined standard battery, known as "Type 1," to microcars, mid-sized vehicles, low-speed electric vehicles designed for last-mile delivery, and small construction vehicles. Additionally, they are advancing their battery swapping stations with second-generation equipment, seamlessly integrating photovoltaic energy storage, battery swapping capabilities, and charging functionalities into intelligent battery swapping devices. These upgraded stations are slated for official deployment commencing in October.
Truck Rental's global ambitions were showcased at the April 2023 Shanghai Auto Show, where they inked strategic overseas procurement agreements for new energy battery-swappable commercial vehicles with companies hailing from over a dozen countries. These nations include Uzbekistan, Poland, Hungary, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. Huang Fengnan shared, "We are currently in negotiations with international conglomerates in Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Japan, with the expectation of signing strategic cooperation agreements within the year. This will accelerate the overseas expansion of our battery swap eco-system project."