Oil and gas giant BP has invested $7m in New Jersey-based electric vehicle (EV) charging firm IoTecha, which uses IoT technology to connect EV charge points with the electricity grid, homes and buildings.

The technology simplifies charging for EV drivers by removing the need for charge cards and multiple payment systems and creates savings by enabling unused power to be sold back to the grid.

BP plans to integrate IoTecha’s products into its EV ecosystem to help accelerate mainstream adoption of EVs and support the transition to more sustainable mobility. The $7m investment was part of a $13.2m round.

IoTecha’s technology connects EV chargers with the electricity grid using the IoT, optimising the charging process by automating payments and delivering cost and potential energy savings to customers.

This investment in IoTecha is aligned with BP’s aim to provide over 70,000 public EV charging points worldwide by 2030. With the global EV infrastructure market set to exceed 55 million chargers in buildings by 2030, charging infrastructure needs to adapt to handle new hardware and increased power demand.

IoTecha’s IoT.On intelligent power platform allows private and fleet vehicles from any manufacturer to communicate seamlessly with charging stations to signal when they need recharging. The platform gathers information over time, identifying patterns and the energy requirements of each user across all forms of EV charging.

The technology also enables EV owners to sell unused electricity back to the grid through vehicle-to-grid (V2G) or bi-directional charging.

“IoTecha is at the forefront of the trend towards electrification, and their unique technology combines EV charging with smart connectivity to deliver cost and energy savings,” said Richard Bartlett, senior vice president at BP. “As demand for EVs continues to grow, we are excited to explore how IoTecha can connect with BP’s wider EV infrastructure in support of our EV charging point targets.”

IoTecha will use this investment to scale its operations through BP’s electrification network. Together, BP and IoTecha will work to accelerate mainstream adoption of EVs and support the transition to more sustainable mobility. This collaboration will be strengthened by the appointment of Shaun Healey, BP Ventures principal, to IoTecha’s board of directors.

Oleg Logvinov, CEO of IoTecha, added: “The transportation and electrification industries have developed for the last hundred years without substantial interactions with each other. The rising tide of transportation electrification is rapidly fusing them together. Smart and interoperable charging will make it possible. IoTecha is proud to join the ecosystem of BP Ventures and we look forward to supporting the acceleration of decarbonisation through collaboration and co-innovation.”

BP Ventures was set up more than ten years ago to identify and invest in private, high-growth technology companies. Since then, it has invested almost $700m in technology companies across more than 31 active investments with more than 250 co-investors.

IoT.On consists of software, hardware and cloud components for the smart charging infrastructure, enabling the potential integration of tens of millions of EVs with the power grid. IoTecha customers are global charge point operators and manufacturers of EVs and EV charging stations.