Volocopter secures $170m funding for electric passenger air taxi launch

Volocopter获得1.7亿美元资金用于启动电动空中巴士

Germany-based firm Volocopter has raised a capital of $170m in the initial signing of its Series E funding round to support the commercial launch of its electric passenger air taxi in first cities globally.

总部位于德国的Volocopter公司在其E系列融资回合的首次签署中筹集了1.7亿美元的资金，以支持其空中巴士进军全球首批城市。

The funding round was led by South Korean investor WP Investment at a pre-money valuation of $1.7bn.

这轮融资由韩国投资者WP Investment牵头，估值为17亿美元。

WP Investment chairman Dr Lei Wang said: “We are confident that Volocopter will be among the first to bring UAM to cities globally, since seeing its aircraft fly in Seoul last year. As a leader in ESG investment, we are excited to empower city sustainability through Volocopter.”

WP投资董事长王磊博士说：“自从去年在首尔看到其飞机飞行以来，我们相信Volocopter将成为首批将UAM引入全球城市的公司之一。作为ESG投资的领导者，我们很高兴通过Volocopter增强城市可持续性。”

Other new and existing investors also participated in the funding round.

其他新老投资者也都参与了这轮融资。

New investors include Honeywell while the existing investors that were part of the funding round include Atlantia, Whysol, and btov Partners.

新投资者包括霍尼韦尔，而参与融资的现有投资者包括亚特兰提亚、维索和btov Partners。

Volocopter will also use the capital raised for the certification of its electric passenger air taxi.

Volocopter还将把筹集的资金用于其电动空中巴士车的认证。

Volocopter CEO Florian Reuter said: “This funding round is a testament to Volocopter’s leading position in what is a highly attractive emerging market.

Volocopter首席执行官Florian Reuter表示：“这一轮融资证明了Volocopter在这个极具吸引力的新兴市场的领先地位。

“We continue to make significant technical and commercial progress as we work toward bringing urban air mobility to life at scale in cities worldwide.”

“我们继续致力于技术和商业上的发展，努力在全球城市实现大规模的城市空中运输。”

Volocopter is said to be the first electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) company to receive the European Union Aviation Safety Agency’s (EASA) Design Organisation Approval (DOA).

欧洲航空安全管理局表示，该公司将首次获得欧洲航空安全管理局的批准。

The company plans to launch its commercial air taxi services in cities such as Singapore, Rome and Paris.

该公司计划在新加坡、罗马和巴黎等城市推出商用空中巴士服务。

In November last year, Volocopter carried out the first crewed test flight of its air taxi in South Korea’s Seoul. The five-minute test flight was conducted at Gimpo International Airport (GMP).

去年11月，Volocopter在韩国首尔进行了空中巴士的首次载人试飞。时长为五分钟的试飞在金浦国际机场（GMP）进行。