German Start-up Vaeridion Lands €120 Million To Build Electric Plane
Munich — German start-up Vaeridion has raised over €120 million ($135 million) in funding from the European Union and investors to develop an electric aircraft, the Munich-based company said on Thursday.
Vaeridion said it had raised €30 million from venture capital investors in its latest funding round. The European Commission had previously made €94.5 million available from its Innovation Fund.
The company is developing a nine-seat passenger aircraft for regional air travel called the Microliner. Vaeridion says it has already received purchase commitments for 130 aircraft.
With the €30 million from investors, Vaeridion wants to build a prototype that is eligible for certification. The EU money is intended for final assembly and for setting up production at the German aviation research and development centre at Oberpfaffenhofen airport. The hub is home to a large branch of the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), and several companies have set up operations nearby.
Vaeridion is aiming to provide a cheaper alternative to the more than 21,000 small, ageing turboprop aircraft that fly on regional routes worldwide. The company's electric aircraft is designed to have a range of 400 kilometres and operate without kerosene.
According to the start-up's calculations, Microliner tickets should cost roughly the same as first-class tickets on Germany's high-speed rail network.
"Building out of Europe, our mission is to make regional flying commercially viable and accessible again, in Europe and for operators worldwide," said chief executive Ivor von Dartel, a former Airbus manager.
The company says its first customer is the ASL Group, a business aviation operator in Belgium and the Netherlands.
Past failures
Two German electric plane start-ups have already failed. The Munich-based company Lilium went insolvent twice before giving up for good.
A second company, Volocopter, also went insolvent and was subsequently sold to Chinese investors.
Other companies are also working on electric aircraft, including the Bavarian start-up ERC System, which is developing a plane with a hybrid engine for transporting patients and other purposes.
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