England-based Advanced Electric Machines (AEM) announced that it has secured 23 million pounds (approximately 26.3 million euros) in a Series A round of funding. The company designs and manufactures next-generation sustainable electric motors and powertrain systems.

Prof. James Widmer, CEO and co-founder of Advanced Electric Machines says: “Today’s funding announcement clears our path to sustainable growth for years to come. It is a vote of confidence from the market in our vision, technical capabilities, and mission to rid EV motors of harmful and problematic materials. Everyone at AEM and our new partners are excited for the role we can now play in making the electric vehicle sector truly sustainable.”

Advanced Electric Machines plans to use the funds to:

• Scale up production capacity at its manufacturing facility in the North East, creating 40 new skilled green jobs in the next two years.
• Establish a global sales and service footprint, accelerating the rollout of its innovative motor solutions.
• Accelerate the development of its SSRD motor for the passenger vehicle segment. It has been developed with Innovate UK, the Advanced Propulsion Centre, and leading academic and automotive partners, including Bentley Motors.
• Bolster R&D capabilities to bring its copper-free motor to production, further improving recyclability.

According to the company, eliminating rare earth permanent magnets reduces costs and reliance on geographically concentrated supply chains while improving recyclability and the environmental footprint of the motor. Advanced Electric Machines’ advanced technology will enable leading passenger and commercial electric vehicle manufacturers to reduce their environmental impact and dependence on critical supply chains, without compromising on quality and performance, the company claims.

Advanced Electric Machines was founded in 2017 when it was spun out from Newcastle University’s electric motor research team, led by AEM’s CEO, Dr James Widmer, and CTO, Dr Andy Steven. Advanced Electric Machines designs and manufactures next-generation sustainable electric motors and powertrain systems that eliminate rare-earth magnets and copper windings while offering performance and efficiency that rivals that of permanent magnet motors.

The funding round was led by Legal & General Capital and Barclays Sustainable Impact Capital, with significant additional investment from Par Equity. Other investors, including Northstar Ventures, the Low Carbon Innovation Fund 2, and Turquoise Capital LLP, participated in the round.

Andrew Noble, Partner at Par Equity, says: “AEM has designed and built an electric powertrain motor which is greener, faster, and more efficient than the incumbent solutions, resulting in significant market pull and potential for growth. It has all the ingredients of the type of business, Par Equity likes to back, and we’re excited to partner with AEM at this critical stage as the company scales its team and capabilities to service a large and rapidly growing EV market.”

Barclays will invest 500 million pounds (approximately 573 million euros) of its own capital, in fast-growing, innovative, environmentally-focused companies whose values are aligned with those of Barclays and which target the goals and timelines of the Paris Agreement. Steven Poulter, Head of Principal Structuring and Investments, Barclays, says: “AEM is solving a fundamental constraint of the EV market – the reliance on rare earth metals for motors – which causes significant cost and supply chain challenges. By producing motors that don’t rely on these metals, AEM is able to remove the key barriers to the production and subsequent adoption of EVs. We are excited to be supporting AEM on the next stage of its journey as it expands into passenger vehicles, a growing market critical to the energy transition.”