ubitricity bags €1.8M to develop charging network for electric cars

ubitricity of Berlin has announced the closing a €1.8 million funding round from Earlybird Venture Capital, to develop its virtual charging network in which it says every electric socket will become a charging point for electric cars.

It says the combination of secure electrical sockets, a mobile meter installed on-board the vehicle, and a carrier grade backend system will ensure secure charging, full transparency for consumers, and a reliable billing process. Much like in mobile communication, the ubitricity concept will enable vehicles to be charged at any electrical outlet.

With very little upfront investment, public and private operators of parking areas will be in the position to offer a future-proof charging infrastructure compatible with upcoming charging standards. ubitricity will assemble and integrate all back-end processes, including user authentication, meter data collection and billing, to provide a new service to users of electric vehicles. Users will be able to charge their cars at home and at practically any location en route.

ubitricity is implementing this concept in cooperation with providers of remote meter reading, energy data management and billing services.

Knut Hechtfischer, who founded ubitricity together with Frank Pawlitschek, said the financing round will provide the funds to develop the missing pieces and conclude the system and process integration.

Earlybird Partner Wolfgang Seibold will join the board of the company: “In the past two years, electric mobility has made a substantial step forward. But two major roadblocks for mass market adoption remain: the cost of batteries and the lack of a convenient and affordable charging infrastructure,” Seibold said, adding that ubitricity’s charging concept has the potential to remove the second barrier. “We were impressed by the simplicity and scalability of ubitricity’s approach. The company can achieve a full coverage of charging points at a fraction of the cost of any alternative method.”