Dutch startup Leap24 raises €4.25M; aims to open 240 EV charging stations in the Netherlands by 2022

Utrecht, the Netherlands-based hyper charging stations for delivery vans and trucks, Leap24, announced that it has raised €4.25M in seed investment from Yard Energy Investments and angel investors.

Lex Roukens, CEO of Yard Energy Investments, says, “The goal to grow electric transport exponentially depends to a large extent on the availability of charging infrastructure. Leap24’s experienced management team and well-founded strategy fit in seamlessly with Yard’s ambition to realise the energy transition by providing growth capital.”

The round was supervised by the corporate finance boutique Waardemakers.

Capital utilisation

Leap 24 says the proceeds from the round will be used to open 240 charging stations at 40 locations in the Netherlands by 2022. The first locations will open in the second quarter of this year.

Pelle Schlichting, founder of Leap24, says that this investment enables Leap24 to accelerate the realisation of the charging network. “With the financial resources that have been made available, it is possible to capture multiple locations in Northwestern Europe.”

The funds will also help deploy multiple locations throughout Northwestern Europe, each location operating with at least six fast-charging parking spaces.

Building a network of fast-charging stations

Founded in February 2021 by Pelle Schlichting and Ferry Bosgra, Leap24 believes that clean mobility should be available to everyone. For entrepreneurs, this is only possible if the switch to electric driving for delivery vans and trucks can be made successfully.

The company aims to provide a network throughout Northwest Europe with easily accessible, spacious depots, and spacious charging stations for electric vehicles. Leap24 believes that entrepreneurs can only make the transition to electric driving for vans and trucks successful if the continuity of their business is guaranteed.

“We know the entrepreneurs who use our charging stations like no other. We know what is going on in their specific industry and we target their mobility needs. 90 per cent of our fast-charging stations are located on industrial estates, 10 per cent in strategically located city locations. Always close by,” mentions the company on its website.

Leap24 has designed the fast-charging stations keeping vans and trucks in mind. These are vehicles that always have to and want to drive on. The charging stations will therefore be spacious, in an easily accessible location and with several fast chargers so that the driver does not have to wait to be able to load. The fast-charging stations are also equipped to guarantee safety and space.

The company believes that in 2025, 20 large Dutch cities will introduce a zero-emission urban distribution zone, which will require corporate users to have locations to quickly charge their vehicles. The ambition ensures that companies are challenged to make their transport and logistics more sustainable. Leap24 helps speed up the process by first equipping the zero-emission zones with fast chargers.