The money is to be used to accelerate the approval of the electric VoloCity.
The German air taxi start-up Volocopter has collected a further 200 million euros from investors. The company announced on Wednesday that the new money will be used to accelerate the approval of the VoloCity, the electric air taxi for cities. “Thanks to our partnerships, we can fall back on the necessary expertise to open the first routes in the next few years,” said company boss Florian Reuter.
Information on the company evaluation was not given. The air taxi developer Lilium from Munich is now valued at more than one billion dollars (around 830 million euros).
Existing investors involved
So far, Volocopter has been financed with a total of 122 million euros. All existing investors, including the logistics subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn, Intel, Daimler and Geely, took part in the new financing round. New on board are Continental AG, the asset manager BlackRock, Avala Capital, Atlantia, NTT and Tokyo Century.
“Our shareholder structure remains balanced with a worldwide mix of strategic and financial investors and thus a reflection of our global ambitions,” said CFO Rene Griemens.
First air taxi routes
Like its German competitor Lilium, Volocopter is developing electrically powered air taxis with which passengers can avoid traffic jams and reach their destination quickly. The ten-year-old company is considered a pioneer and plans to operate the first commercial air taxi routes within the next two years. A logistics drone is also being developed.
Companies around the world are now in a costly race for the first commercial air taxi offer. In addition to Volocopter, Joby and Lilium, well-known names such as Airbus and Volkswagen compete with each other. Meanwhile, the European aviation safety authority EASA also considers the use of drones and air taxis to be realistic by the middle of the decade.
According to analysts, the potential is huge
The analysts at Morgan Stanley rate the potential as huge. According to this, the market for electronic air taxis, which deliver goods and transport passengers, could be worth more than $ 1.5 trillion by 2040.
