Amazon has announced the latest investments as part of its $2 billion Climate Pledge Fund, which includes funding for the rollout of a new solid-state transformer that will enable high-speed electric vehicle charging.
American electrical company Resilient Power has secured a total of $5 million as part of its seed funding, which was led by Energy Transition Ventures, alongside investment from the Climate Pledge Fund and Korean venture capital group GS Futures.
The Climate Pledge Fund is Amazon’s corporate venture capital fund, established to invest in companies that can accelerate Amazon’s path to meeting The Climate Pledge. The investment is expected to contribute to the electrification of Amazon’s delivery infrastructure.
Resilient’s solid-state transformer combines an array of utilities including a step-down transformer and EV charger.
A single unit is claimed to be capable of connecting to up to 24 vehicles for high-speed charging when linked to a medium-voltage cable on the power grid, reducing the need for expensive and time-consuming upgrades to power facilities.
The transformer is also able to act as a router for solar power to the grid, and as an electrical storage system.
“Electrifying Amazon’s delivery fleets is a critical piece of ensuring our company achieves net zero carbon emissions by 2040,” said Amazon Vice President and Head of Worldwide Sustainability Kara Hurst. “We plan to have 100,000 electric vehicles deployed on the roads by 2030.”
Neal Dikeman, Partner and Co-founder of Energy Transition Ventures, said: “Our grid is more than 100 years old; we’re going to rewrite it. We are excited to work with The Amazon Climate Pledge Fund and the Resilient Power team as they work towards revolutionizing the grid.”
Resilient plans to use the funding for an extensive pilot program with large electric vehicle fleet owners, as well as an expansion of their marketing scheme.
“We must consider how to deploy charging stations at mass scale without jeopardizing the grid,” states Tom Keister, Chief Executive Officer of Resilient Power.
“Our partnership with The Amazon Climate Pledge Fund will allow us to build the infrastructure our customers need to support and accelerate EV adoption.”
