Startup Ample is determined to convince commercial fleets of the advantages of electric vehicle battery swapping technology. Over the past three years, the company has been testing this technology in San Francisco, Madrid, and Japan, with plans to secure commercial contracts in 2025.

Thanks to a new $25 million investment from Mitsubishi Corporation, Ample is gearing up for its next phase of growth. This funding comes after Ample raised a total of $190 million in 2021. Co-founder and president John de Souza revealed that this is just the first step in a fundraising round expected to reach $75 million.

Ample offers commercial fleets swappable battery packs and automated swapping stations. With the new funds, the startup aims to increase the number of swapping stations from tens to hundreds and expand its fleet from hundreds to thousands of vehicles in the next year. Partnering with Mitsubishi Corp., which has connections to fleets interested in electrification and a clean energy division, will provide Ample with additional resources for its operations.

One of Ample’s first customers will be Free2Move, a carsharing service owned by automaker Stellantis, currently operating Ample-equipped all-electric Fiat 500es in Madrid. Ample is planning to expand its presence in Madrid and venture into ridesharing and last-mile delivery markets. A similar partnership with Drive Sally in San Francisco saw Ample providing battery-swappable Kia Niros to Uber drivers.

Ample is set to reveal its commercial customers in Japan soon, including those from its pilot program in Kyoto. The company established battery swapping stations in Kyoto earlier this year in collaboration with ENEOS and already counts MK Taxi, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, and Nippon Life Insurance Company among its fleet partners.

While Ample is based in San Francisco, it is focusing its initial commercial deployments in Europe and Japan due to uncertainties surrounding EV legislation in the U.S. De Souza believes that maintaining subsidies could pave the way for commercialization in the U.S., with the company’s modular batteries made with South Korean cells and assembled in a California facility.

As legislation evolves, Ample plans to collaborate with OEMs to ensure compliance and offer a seamless solution for integrating its batteries into EVs without disrupting production lines.