Danish ride-hailing company, Viggo, has secured 3.27 million euros in funding from a Norwegian venture capital fund and a group of private investors from Canada, including former world heavyweight boxing champion, Lennox Lewis. The funds will support the company’s international expansion, which aims to offer its electric ride-hailing services and ultra-fast charging infrastructure in new markets, and to compete with fossil fuel taxi companies.
Viggo offers a ride-hailing service with electric vehicles and operates primarily with battery electric cars. In Oslo, it also uses the fuel cell car Toyota Mirai and urban high-power charging hubs. The company plans to expand its ultra-fast charging services in its home market and other international markets, although it has not yet revealed which markets it will target.
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The main investor, Link Capital, is a highly innovative fund that was recently listed by the World Economic Forum as one of the 17 most innovative funds in the world. Christian Rangen, the Chairman of Link Capital, said that the combination of ultra-fast charging and an app-based ride-hailing service offers a unique value proposition, which is a good fit in many markets.
Viggo was founded in Copenhagen in 2019 and has since relied on electric cars for its ride-hailing services. In 2020, the company ordered 300 Fisker Ocean cars, which will join the fleet from Q2 2023. The company’s current fleet includes Tesla cars of all models, Jaguar I-PACE, Mercedes EQB, EQC, WQE & EQV, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Ford Mustang E-Mach, and Kia EV6. The company expects to provide over one million rides this year and plans to open 100 charging stations under the ViggoEnergy label within the next twelve months.
See also: Danish bus company Vikingbus orders 31 Mercedes-Benz eCitaro all-electric vehicles
Viggo CEO Kenneth Herschel said, “We are extremely happy and proud that such forward-thinking investors can see the potential in Viggo and share our vision for the future of electric urban transportation and time-effective charging infrastructure.” Viggo’s expansion plans are a positive step towards sustainable urban transportation and reducing carbon emissions from the transportation sector.
