Charge+ and TRIVE Venture Capital Partner for Southeast Asia’s Electric Mobility Push

Singapore-based EV charging startup Charge+ is gearing up to expand its electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure across Southeast Asia. The company recently secured funding in a Series A round, which was led by TRIVE Venture Capital, a Singapore-based firm specializing in early-stage high-growth technology companies.

Singapore plans to boost the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) by aiming to deploy 60,000 EV charging points nationwide by 2030. While the nation currently has around 3,600 charging points in operation, it plans to scale up its infrastructure. Charge+ holds an existing contract with the Singapore Land Transport Authority to supply approximately 4,000 EV charging points in housing estate car parks. 

The secured funding will be instrumental in fulfilling two primary objectives. Firstly, Charge+ will execute an ongoing contract with the Singapore Land Transport Authority (LTA) to deploy around 4,000 EV charging points within the car parks of Housing Development Board (HDB) public housing estates. 

Secondly, the company will embark on an ambitious endeavor to establish a 5,000-kilometer-long EV charging highway spanning Southeast Asia. It will include five nations: Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

Since its establishment in 2018, Charge+ already has over 1,000 strategically distributed EV charging points in the city-state. These charging points can be found in various settings, including public housing estates, condominiums, shopping malls, commercial buildings, and industrial facilities, making them easily accessible to EV owners from different walks of life.

One of Charge+’s proprietary chargers is celebrated as the world’s slimmest EV charger, unlike the conventional charging units in the market. These chargers feature a dual-connector configuration, enhancing their usability while efficiently utilizing space, a design element that has garnered attention and recognition.

The company aspires to install 30,000 EV charging points worldwide by 2030. 

This proposed network will be Southeast Asia’s longest EV charging support, potentially making electric vehicle travel more accessible and convenient across the region.

Further, Charge+ aims to collaborate with other regional EV charging operators to create a unified and seamless charging network. Roaming agreements have already been established with prominent entities such as Thailand’s Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), Indonesia’s PT PLN and Malaysia’s Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB). 

These agreements are designed to enable users of the Charge+ mobile application to conveniently access a broader array of EV chargers in their respective countries, making electric vehicle travel even more accessible and hassle-free. 

Ong Tze Boon, Chairman of Charge+, shared his opinion on the recent partnership. “Since founding Charge+ in 2018, our vision has been to catalyze electric mobility adoption across Southeast Asia. We are, therefore, pleased to have partnered with TRIVE, an ideal investor to lead this Series A and provide the foundation for our next phase of expansion,” he stated. 

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