Windrose Technology aims to raise at least $400 million through an initial public offering (IPO) in New York and potentially Brussels, reports Bloomberg. This new fundraising goal is double the $200 million target originally set by the company’s founder and CEO, Wen Han, in an earlier interview with the newspaper.
The funds from the IPO will be directed toward research and development (R&D) as well as the production of zero-emission, autonomous-driving trucks, according to Bloomberg.
Windrose has already opened an R&D facility in Belgium to strengthen its ability to meet local European demand. While some Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers face EU tariffs, Wen Han explained that the decision to establish a European base is more about providing a better customer experience through local support, the business news site reports.
The company, which has been producing electric trucks in Suzhou, China, has already secured 6,000 pre-orders for its vehicles. Windrose expects its production capacity to reach 5,000 trucks by the end of 2025, Bloomberg adds.
Although Windrose is not yet producing vehicles in large volumes, it is positioning itself to compete in the European market in the long term. Currently, its production volumes do not match those of established European manufacturers like Volvo Trucks, which has delivered more than 3,800 electric trucks globally, Bloomberg reports.