(Yicai Global) Feb. 20 -- Newrizon, a Chinese maker of smart connected commercial new energy vehicles, has raised over CNY100 million (USD14.6 million) from Nio Capital, the investment arm of Chinese electric car startup Nio, in its latest financing round.

The proceeds from the Series B fundraiser will be used in research, development, mass production, and marketing of light trucks and vans, Shanghai-based Newrizon said via WeChat today. They will also go toward the R&D and update of electric and smart connected vehicle technologies, speeding up supply chain integration, and further expansion on the domestic and foreign markets, it said.

Commercial vehicles account for about 60 percent of road transport carbon emissions, which have great potential to be cut, and the electrification of commercial vehicles need to be stepped up, said Zhu Yan, Nio Capital’s managing partner, adding that Nio Capital’s auto industry resources can help Newrizon.

Newrizon was founded in September 2020 by Huang Chendong, who is also its chief executive and previously worked at SAIC Motor and Nio. It banked USD10 million in a Series A funding round that same month and raised nearly USD50 million from China Creation Ventures, Lightspeed China Partners, Huolala, and Qiyuan Capital in a Series B fundraiser the year after.

Newrizon’s first product, the EC1, a pure electric light truck with a cruising range of more than 230 kilometers, rolled off the assembly line in October 2021, and has sold over 1,000 units. Its second light truck, the IC1, is expected to hit the market mid to late next year, with a third vehicle, the IV1 van, under development.

Huolala Technology, a Chinese on-demand trucking services provider, has ordered 50,000 of the IC1 and IV1 models to be delivered in batches over the next three years.

Editor: Martin Kadiev