Electrical appliances maker V-Guard invests in battery startup Gegadyne

Gegadyne Energy Labs Pvt. Ltd on Friday said it has received a strategic investment of $5 million (Rs 36.5 crore) from electrical appliances maker V-Guard Industries Ltd.

Gegadyne was founded in 2015 by Jubin Varghese and Ameya Gadiwan. The Mumbai-based startup claims it has energy-efficient and eco-friendly alternatives to conventional lithium-ion batteries. 

Gegadyne claims it has built a technology which allows batteries to charge from zero to 100% in around 15 minutes.

The market for batteries is expected to grow globally at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15% over the next seven years, it noted.    

The company had raised  an undisclosed amount from Mumbai Angels Network in February 2018.

V-Guard Industries, which was founded in 1997, manufactures electrical appliances. Its products include voltage stabilisers, water heaters, UPS (uninterruptible power source), kitchen appliances and pumps.

It was one of the first initial public offerings (IPOs) to go through soon after the market crash in January 2008 at a time when various issues were postponed or had to be rolled back for lack of investor interest.

The company, in its annual report, said its revenue declined 3.3% to Rs 2,482 crore for the year ended March 2020, primarily because of the nationwide lockdown towards the fiscal end. March is usually a strong month for companies like V-Guard.

In 2017, V-Guard Industries said it would pick up a majority stake in GUTS Electro-Mech Ltd, a domestic switch gears and current transformers maker.