Porsche continued to trust the business potential of an electric supercar company called Rimac when it took part in a $500 million investment round for the Croatian start-up.
Polands Iga Swiatek (R) is accompanied by Porsche CEO Oliver Blume (L) as she steers the winner's car, a Porsche Taycan GTS Sport Turismo, to the center court, after winning the single's final match against Belarus Aryna Sabalenka (not in the picture) of the Women's Tennis Grand Prix WTA 500 tournament in Stuttgart, southwestern Germany, on April 24, 2022.
"Strengthening Partnership"
Although Porsche did not publicly reveal the exact amount it invested in Rimac, the company said that it was "eight figures," according to a report by The Verge.
The famous German car manufacturer noted that it would not hold a controlling interest in Rimac, and it will retain its recently disclosed 20 percent equity stake in the company.
Lutz Meschke, deputy chairman of the executive board of Porsche AG and member of the executive board for Finance and IT, said that their company is "delighted" that Rimac has gained significant investments.
"We are optimistic about the continued development of this exciting company," Meschke added in a statement with The Verge.
Among the investors who also participated in the funding round are SoftBank's Vision Fund 2 and Goldman Sachs Asset Management.
The German company also owns a controlling stake in Greyp, an electric mountain bike company headed by Rimac's CEO, Mate Rimac.
Earlier in May, Porsche invested $400 million in Group14, an electric manufacturing company, for its lithium-silicon EV battery project to offer power cells with a new and different approach to battery development.
Read also: Porsche 911 Hybrid: Clean Energy to Modern Classic Car, Making Laps at Nurburgring
All About Rimac
The electric supercar startup was founded back in 2009 by Mate Rimac, who started the business as a one-person operation in a garage.
But over the years, the company expanded its brand when it captured the trust and interest of large automakers to build their electric supercars. Among the automakers are Porsche, Bugatti, and Hyundai.
Last year, the startup launched the Nevera, which is a quad motor with a 1,914 horsepower demonstration and a top speed of 258 mph. The vehicle has the ability to leap from 0-60 mph in just less than ten seconds.
The Nevera is expected to dethrone Bugatti Chiron for the record of fastest sports car ever built.
Equipped with a 120kWh battery pack, the Nevera employs four electric motors, one for each wheel, to demonstrate an impressive 1.4 MW of power, which according to Rimac, is equal to 1,914 horsepower.
Additionally, its quad-motor can speed up its car to 60 miles per hour from a standstill in a span of 1.85 seconds and it has a top speed that can go 258 miles per hour.
Rimac is planning to use the new funding to employ additional workers for this year and invest in broadening its production capacity for its high-volume projects. The startup is still considered a low-volume manufacturer since it can only produce a few vehicles each month, particularly since the set limit for Nevera is only 150 units.
However, Rimac said in a statement to thank Porsche's confidence in the startup that it will be aiming for "ambitious growth plans" for the next years to come.
Related Article: Porsche Plans to Go Carbon-Neutral, to Make 80% of Vehicles Electric by 2030
