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Fuel delivery firm Booster raises $125 mln in late-stage funding

By Manya Saini

May 25 (Reuters) - Fuel delivery firm Booster said on Wednesday it had raised $125 million in a late-stage funding round led by investment firm Rose Park Advisors with participation from Japan's Mitsubishi Corp.

The San Mateo, California-based company offers an on-demand platform for booking fuel services to its customers such as tech giants Amazon and IBM. Its portfolio includes conventional, renewable and alternative fuels.

With global fuel demand nearing pre-pandemic levels and crude oil prices touching more than a decade high, energy companies have seen huge investor interest and have been among the winners of the year. The S&P 500 Energy Index is up over 50% so far in 2022.

Booster's focus on sustainability is relevant in today's environment where "fuel prices hover at all-time highs and energy independence concerns increase," founder and Chief Executive Officer Frank Mycroft told Reuters.

The company said its revenue in the first quarter more than doubled year-over-year, as large e-commerce and delivery companies like United Parcel Service also employed its services.

"Our ability to directly deliver U.S.-produced clean energy without the hard infrastructure helps communities today by lowering fuel consumption," Mycroft added.

Booster said it is promoting the transition towards 100% renewable diesel as environment-conscious consumers switch to alternative fuels and calls for greener business practices grow louder.

The company is also increasing its capabilities in the on-demand electric vehicle (EV) charging space, it said, as the popularity of EVs grows in the United States.

Other investors in the series D fundraise included Chaac Ventures, Equinor Ventures, Thayer Ventures, Conversion Capital, and Enterprise Holding Ventures, Booster said.

The company did not disclose its valuation after the round. (Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)