Spring Lane Capital Announces $20M Project Equity Commitment to 7 Generation Capital to Finance Electric Vehicle ("EV") Projects for Commercial Fleets

BOSTON, June 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Spring Lane Capital, a private equity firm focused on providing catalytic project capital for sustainability solutions in the energy, food, water and waste industries, announced today a project equity commitment by its private fund to 7 Generation Capital ("7Gen"), a developer of commercial electric vehicle ("EV") projects focused on commercial fleets. The $20M equity investment in 7Gen will catalyze the development of commercial EV charging infrastructure throughout Canada. 7Gen provides a unique value proposition as a one stop shop for commercial fleet operators, offering assistance with costing and implementation, access to vehicles and charging infrastructure, as well as ongoing support and maintenance in one convenient package.

7Gen represents a compelling entry-point into the EV space, a high-growth sector that is critical to decarbonization. While the commercial EV market is still in its infancy and most companies have yet to incorporate EVs as core parts of their fleets, commitments to electrify are growing. Due to a variety of factors - mainly vehicle availability, corporate net zero commitments and carbon pricing signals - electrification of last-mile delivery vehicles and other fleet vehicles is on the cusp of substantial growth in North America. 7Gen is well positioned to take advantage of this growth as one of the first movers in the space in Canada, and the only player that offers a holistic solution.

"We are on the cusp of widespread adoption of electric vehicles by commercial fleets, driven largely by the arrival of new vehicle models and corporate decarbonization targets," said Nathaniel Lowbeer-Lewis, Vice President, Canada for Spring Lane Capital. "This transition represents an enormous market opportunity and unlocks avenues for new types of institutional capital to enter this dynamic space, as corporations look for holistic service providers to help them navigate the complexity of fleet conversion. 7Gen's unique model adds significant value for fleet operators thereby supporting the potential for higher costs of capital. We are also extremely impressed with 7Gen's leadership team led by Frans Tjallingii who brings deep experience in corporate logistics and operations, technology and entrepreneurship. We anticipate our investment will help 7Gen catalyze the electrification of commercial fleets in Canada and beyond."

"Fleet managers see the opportunity and challenges on the road to electrification," shares 7Gen CEO Frans Tjallingii. "7Gen's role is to make their journey easier and financially attractive. Working with Spring Lane, we can bring capital to the equation that helps us provide an offering that is longer term and provides our customers with the structure to be able to capitalize on the savings on maintenance cost and energy that electric vehicles bring. From day 1, it has been great working with Spring Lane. They are pragmatic and, besides looking out for the interests of their investors, are also really committed to our long term success."    

"Spring Lane Capital seeks out sustainable infrastructure enterprises like 7Gen in exciting growth areas with solutions that are ready for prime time but that are still a little too small for traditional project finance," added Rob Day, Partner and Co-Founder of Spring Lane Capital. "We specialize in finding ways to package these investments so they are attractive to a range of institutional investors who want in on cutting edge, real assets investments. 7Gen is a natural fit for our portfolio thanks to their proven technology, proven applications and strong management team, all of which we believe will translate to fast growth and compelling returns for institutional investors."

7Gen provides technology agnostic, turnkey solutions to transition corporate fleets to EVs by providing four key services: vehicle leasing; installation, management and financing of charging infrastructure; project feasibility and costing; and provision and management of the software required to operate a customer's EV ecosystem. 7Gen's ultimate goal is to offer a completely seamless EVs-as-a-service by aggregating the expertise, operational capacity and financing partners required to offer customers a one-payment solution. Initial customer targets for 7Gen are last-mile delivery ("LMD") fleets and refuse vehicles.

In December 2019, Spring Lane Capital announced its final closing of the firm's inaugural private fund, bringing total equity commitments to approximately US$156.5 million. At the same time, the firm announced three partnerships and investments with Atlas Organics, Aries Clean Energy, and Cambrian Innovation.

About Spring Lane Capital:

Spring Lane Capital is a private equity firm based in Boston, MA and Montreal, QC focused on providing catalytic project capital - project finance and growth capital in tandem - for smaller-scale "distributed" solutions in the energy, food, water and waste industries. The firm's structured financial model seeks to tap into some of the fastest growing segments of these markets, that more traditional forms of project capital cannot access due to their scale and the limitations of existing investment models. For more information, please visit springlanecapital.com.

Media Contact:

Cindy Stoller 
Confluence Partners
917-331-0418
[email protected]

About 7 Generation Capital:

7 Generation Capital ("7Gen") is a Canadian startup mobilizing institutional capital to accelerate the low carbon transition. They are starting with enabling the adoption of electric vehicles in the commercial medium and heavy duty space. They provide turnkey fleet electrification execution support, financing, and software for fleet managers that want to join the EV revolution. To learn more, visit 7gencap.com.    

Media Contact:

Shayna Rector Bleeker
[email protected]

SOURCE Spring Lane Capital