Oil major BP said on Tuesday its venture capital fund invested $20 million in Israeli firm StoreDot, which developed a battery system that could potentially charge an electric car in the amount of time it takes to fill a gas tank, Reuters reports.
The investment, BP Ventures said, is part of a push to tap into the growth in electric vehicle technologies and infrastructure.
“Ultra-fast charging is at the heart of BP’s electrification strategy,” said Tufan Erginbilgic, chief executive at BP downstream. “We are committed to be the fuel provider of choice – no matter what car our customers drive.”
StoreDot, which raised $60 million from Daimler in September, developed a super-fast charger for cellphones before expanding into automotives. The company says its lithium ion-based battery technology can fully charge an electric vehicle in five minutes.
StoreDot is aiming to bring its mobile phone batteries to market as early as 2019.