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					</table><p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/blupine-loan-120-mw-solar-project/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Renewable energy company BluPine Energy has announced the financial closure of ₹5.11 billion (~$61.3 million) for its 120 MW solar project in Gujarat.</strong></a> The green loan financing for the project was secured from Standard Chartered. The total investment for the project is valued at ₹6.65 billion (~$79.8 million). Upon completion, the project is expected to generate about 323,000 MWh of solar energy annually, offsetting an estimated 296,000 tons of CO2 and providing power to approximately 270,000 households.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/odisha-generic-tariffs-small-hydro" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission has determined the generic tariff and prices for renewable energy projects, including small hydro, biomass, and non-fossil</strong></a> fuel-based co-generation power projects. The control period of the tariff will span three financial years, starting from the beginning of the financial year (FY) 2023-24 and ending at the conclusion of FY 2025-26 for all renewable power projects. For small hydroelectric projects, the control period extends from the beginning of FY 2023-24 to the end of FY 2027-28.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/india-based-kpit-unveils-ion-battery-technology/"><strong>Pune-headquartered KPIT Technologies, an autonomous software integration partner for the automotive and mobility sector, has introduced its sodium-ion battery technology</strong></a> with the aim of alleviating lithium dependency in India’s energy storage sector. The technology is anticipated to decrease reliance on imported core battery materials and boasts various applications within the automotive and mobility realms, particularly for electric two and three-wheelers and commercial vehicles.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/exponent-secures-26-4-million-series-b-funding" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bengaluru-based electric vehicle (EV) charging and battery startup Exponent Energy has raised $26.4 million in a series B funding round led by Eight Roads Ventures</a> </strong>and a strategic investment from TDK Ventures, marking their debut investment in India’s EV sector. The company plans to utilize the fresh funding to expand its presence to five new cities by the fiscal year 2024. The startup aims to diversify its electric three-wheeler space offerings and enter the intercity e-bus segment in 2024. By 2025, Exponent envisions deploying 1,000 charging stations and powering 25,000 EVs with their innovative technology. The latest funding brings Exponent’s total capital raised to $44.4 million.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-record-storage-capacity-in-q3-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>The U.S. energy storage market installed 7,322 MWh in the third quarter (Q3) of 2023, the highest capacity in a quarter to date, according to the U.S. Energy Storage Monitor report</strong></a> by Wood Mackenzie and the American Clean Power Association. The cumulative capacity of energy storage installations in 2023 reached 13,518 MWh, surpassing the total volume in the whole of 2022, which stood at 11,976 MWh. The report suggests that installations in Q3 could have been higher if not for the delay experienced by 80% of the projects that were in the pipeline.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/lcoe-primary-driver-choosing-right-solar-inverter-size/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>As solar power installations continue to grow, it has become crucial to optimally size the solar photovoltaic (PV) inverters to maintain their efficiency and performance</strong></a> to manage power generation in high ambient temperatures. Mercom India hosted a webinar titled “Optimal Sizing of PV Inverters for Robust Performance in High Ambient Temperatures” on December 12, 2023, where industry experts discussed the factors involved in optimally sizing solar PV inverters for diverse locations and temperatures and achieving higher performance.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/mercom-staff/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Mercom Staff</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"></div></div><div class="clearfix"></div></div></div>

Daily News Wrap-Up: BluPine Gets ₹5.11 Billion Loan for 120 MW Solar Project


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					</table><p>Bengaluru-based electric vehicle (EV) charging and battery startup <a href="https://www.exponent.energy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Exponent Energy</a> has raised $26.4 million in a series B funding round led by <a href="https://eightroads.com/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Eight Roads Ventures</a> and a strategic investment from <a href="https://tdk-ventures.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TDK Ventures</a>, marking their debut investment in India’s EV sector.</p>
<p>The company plans to utilize the fresh funding to expand its presence to five new cities by the fiscal year 2024. The startup aims to diversify its electric three-wheeler (e3W) space offerings and enter the intercity e-bus segment in 2024.</p>
<p>By 2025, Exponent envisions deploying 1,000 charging stations and powering 25,000 EVs with their innovative technology.</p>
<p>The latest funding brings Exponent&#8217;s total capital raised to $44.4 million.</p>
<p>Exponent Energy&#8217;s proprietary energy stack, including the battery pack, charging station, and connector, enables a 0%-100% rapid charge in just 15 minutes for EVs.</p>
<p>Founded three years ago, the startup gained attention for its 15-minute rapid charging solution coupled with a 3,000-cycle life warranty using standard Li-ion cells. The technology is said to address key challenges in EV adoption—reducing charging time and enhancing battery life, contributing to the widespread transition to electric mobility.</p>
<p>The series B round also saw participation from existing investors, including Lightspeed, YourNest VC, 3one4 Capital, AdvantEdge VC, and the family office of Dr. Pawan Munjal, Executive Chairman of Hero MotoCorp.</p>
<p>New global investors also joined the round, reflecting the industry&#8217;s growing interest in Exponent&#8217;s innovative approach to EV charging infrastructure.</p>
<p>Arun Vinayak, Co-founder &amp; CEO of Exponent Energy, said, “We’re excited to welcome Eight Roads and TDK to our cap table and grateful to all our existing investors who’ve supported us since Exponent’s inception. With this round, we’re set to scale operations from battery manufacturing to on-ground network presence across categories &amp; cities and simplify the broken energy ecosystem at scale.”</p>
<p>Aditya Systla, Partner, Eight Roads Ventures, said, “Exponent’s focus on the Indian commercial vehicle space is a massive opportunity which constitutes 10% of vehicles but consumes 70% of the on-road energy, with more vehicles transitioning to electric over the next few years.”</p>
<p>In August last year, the company <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/exponent-energy-raises-13-million-series-a-funding" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> $13 million in its Series A funding round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and participation from existing investors like YourNest VC, 3one4 Capital, and AdvantEdge VC.</p>
<p>According to Mercom Capital Group‘s recently released report titled <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/product/9m-q3-2023-funding-ma-report-storage-grid/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">9M and Q3 2023 Funding and M&amp;A Report for Storage and Grid</a>, in the third quarter of 2023, VC funding for smart grid companies declined by 86% year-over-year to $248 million across 11 deals.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/gautamee-hazarika/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Gautamee Hazarika</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Picture1.jpg" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Gautamee,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
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<a href="gautamee@mercomindia.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">gautamee@mercomindia.com</a></p>
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<div class="authorboxn"><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Picture1.jpg" width="102" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/gautamee-hazarika/" rel="noopener">Gautamee</a> is a reporter at Mercom India. Prior to Mercom, Gautamee was working as a multimedia news journalist at ThePrint in New Delhi. She has received her Bachelors in English Honors and Masters in English Literature from St.Stephen&#8217;s College, University of Delhi.<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/gautamee-hazarika/" rel="noopener">More articles from Gautamee</a></div>
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Exponent Energy Secures $26.4 Million in Series B Funding to Propel Expansion


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					</table><p>Electric vehicle (EV) charging startup <a href="https://www.exponent.energy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Exponent Energy</a> secured $13 million in its Series A funding round. The funding round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners saw participation from existing investors like YourNest VC, 3one4 Capital, and AdvantEdge VC.</p>
<p>The amount raised will be used to scale up Exponent Energy&#8217;s EV charger network to 100 locations per city, starting with Bengaluru. A part of the funding will be used to streamline the company&#8217;s battery pack production.</p>
<p>Commenting on the funding round, Arun Vinayak, Co-founder &amp; CEO of Exponent Energy<strong>,</strong> said, &#8220;We&#8217;ve really enjoyed thinking aloud with the Lightspeed team in all conversations leading up to the investment. We believe we have a great partner in them as we simplify energy for EVs &#8211; for an all-electric future. Our technology already delivers a seamless charging experience, and with our vehicle partnership in place, we&#8217;ll scale up our production and network presence to 100 charging location points per city to deliver freedom &amp; flexibility to our customers. This funding now allows us to execute even faster and make 15-min rapid charging the new normal.&#8221;</p>
<p>Exponent Energy recently <a href="https://mercomindia.com/daily-news-wrap-up-intel-to-raise-green-bonds/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">partnered</a> with Altigreen Propulsion Labs, a commercial EV manufacturer, to unveil the fastest charging electric three-wheeler that rapidly charges from 0-100% battery capacity within 15 minutes. The Exponent-enabled Altigreen neEV HD has an 8.19 kWh energy pack – a proprietary battery by Exponent.</p>
<p>The vehicle is expected to deliver a city drive range of 80-85 km and charge up in 15 minutes at the Exponent&#8217;s energy pump network. This would be achieved by the EV pump delivering 600A of current, which is 15x industry standard, while managing individual cell characteristics, including thermals, to ensure safety, long battery life, and performance consistency even at 50 degrees Celsius.</p>
<p>Founded in 2020 by former Ather Energy executives Arun Vinayak and Sanjay Byalal, the startup claims that it has built a battery pack and charging station called the E-pack and E-pump that together can unlock 15-minute rapid charging for EVs. The battery pack utilizes regular lithium-ion cells while maintaining a cycle count of 3,000. According to the company, this is made possible by their proprietary battery management system and charging algorithms, layered on top of their unique E-pack design.</p>
<p>Previously, Exponent Energy had <a href="https://mercomindia.com/exponent-energy-5-million-pre-series-a/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $5 million in its Pre-Series A round from prominent investors such as Motherson Group, a leading global supplier of automotive components, YourNest VC, 3one4 Capital, and AdvantEdge VC.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Arjun Joshi</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Arjun-Joshi-1.png" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Arjun Joshi,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Arjun Joshi.</a></p>
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<p><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Arjun-Joshi-1.png" width="86" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong style="color: #00b451">Arjun Joshi</strong> </a>is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Before joining Mercom, he worked as a technical writer for enterprise resource software companies based in India and abroad. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Psychology, and Optional English from Garden City University, Bangalore. <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Arjun Joshi.</a></p>
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EV Charging Startup Exponent Energy Raises $13 Million in Series A Funding Round

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