ZAGREB, June 20 (Xinhua) -- German automobile manufacturer Porsche AG has invested in Croatian electric vehicle (EV) tech company Rimac Automobili and its subsidiary Greyp Bikes, the Croatian company announced in a press release on Wednesday.
Mate Rimac, founder and CEO of Rimac Automobili said in the press release, "Entering the collaborative partnership with Porsche AG is an important step in our strategy to become a leading EV technology supplier to the global OEMs (original equipment manufacturer)."
A spokesperson confirmed to Xinhua on Wednesday that Porsche AG had decided to buy a minority ten percent stake in Rimac.
In 2011, the Zagreb-based Rimac Automobili grabbed media attention when it introduced Concept One, the world's first all-electric hypercar at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Seven years later, on March 6, 2018, at the Geneva Motor Show, Rimac Automobili unveiled a new car called Concept Two.
"We feel that Rimac's ideas and approaches are extremely promising, which is why we hope to enter into close collaboration with the company in the form of a development partnership," said Lutz Meschke, deputy chairman of the executive board and member of the executive board for finance and IT at Porsche, in the press release.
In 2017, Rimac closed a 30-million-euro (35 million U.S. dollars) deal with China-based Camel Group Ltd. It was the single largest foreign direct investment in a Croatian technology company.
The new funding round should boost the business and support the global expansion of Rimac and Greyp, the company said in the press release.
As a co-investor in Rimac's series B round led by Camel Group Co. Ltd., Porsche AG concluded the company's second capital raising round. As of June 2018, the founder and CEO Mate Rimac remains the majority shareholder.
