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Electric Bus Maker Proterra May Be Unlikely Beneficiary Of Trump's Paris Retreat

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Proterra

President Donald Trump’s controversial decision to pull the United States out of the Paris Climate Agreement, ostensibly to aid carbon-based energy companies and heavy manufacturers, may have unexpectedly improved the outlook for Proterra, a fast-growing maker electric buses that’s enjoying a demand spike from local transit agencies. 

Proterra said today it’s raised $55 million in a Series 6 funding round that comes shortly after the clean vehicle company led by Tesla alumni snagged $140 million in a Series 5 round in January. Al Gore’s Generation Investment Management took a leading position in the latest round, which also attracted investment from BMW’s i Ventures, Proterra said.

The company just opened its second bus factory, in suburban Los Angeles, in the past few weeks to supply its battery-powered vehicles to cities and regional transit operators in the western half of the U.S. And regardless of Trump’s move at the federal level, there’s no indication that Proterra’s customers are losing interest, CEO Ryan Popple told Forbes.

“If anything we've seen acceleration at the city level,” he said. “We're ahead of plan this year on new orders, so that's driving us to increase the (production) ramp, especially in the second half of 2018.”

Popple is working to convince transit fleet operators to ditch diesel-powered and natural gas buses in favor of Proterra’s quiet, zero-tailpipe emission Catalyst models that sell for about $750,000. His argument is that they are ultimately a more affordable option due to lower fuel and maintenance costs. The privately held company plans is tripling production of buses this year by speeding up output at its Greenville, South Carolina, factory and with the new Los Angeles facility.

(For more see Proterra's Ryan Popple Is On A Mission To Electrify The Transit Bus Business.)

“More than ever before, cities are looking for smart and sustainable transportation solutions that can reduce pollution efficiently and effectively,” Gore said in a statement. “Proterra is incredibly well positioned to help accelerate the growth of sustainable cities and continue our transition to a clean energy economy.”

Along with helping to expand production at its two bus factories, proceeds from the latest funding round will help boost R&D efforts at Proterra’s Silicon Valley headquarters and battery factory in Burlingame, California, Popple said.

Following Trump’s Paris announcement, a large and growing coalition of U.S. states, cities, companies and universities, have pledged to stick with the goals of the international climate agreement as part of the We Are Still In initiative. Proterra has orders for more than 400 buses to cities including Seattle, Dallas, Nashville, San Jose, Philadelphia and Reno, all of whom have joined that movement.

“There's this feeling that the federal government has largely placed it in someone else's hands if there's going to be change," Popple said. With hundreds of cities publicly pledging to push for lower carbon emissions, "it's also a good case of customers raising their hands."

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