Madrid-born Cabify, a ridehailing and on-demand logistics operator active in Spain and Latin America, has closed on a €40 million loan from the European Investment Bank.
The loan has been arranged through EIB’s emissions reductions mandate, with the money allocated to decarbonise Cabify’s Spanish vehicle fleets by introducing new electric vehicles and charging points. It appears to have been provided through the Connecting Europe and Future Mobility EIB lending facilities.
Cabify will invest €82 million to deploy 1,400 EVs for ridehailing through its app, resulting in 9 kilotonnes of CO2 reduction on average each year as traditional vehicles are phased out.
The aim is to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions across Cabify’s Spanish ridehailing and logistics fleet by 2025, and globally by 2030.
Ricardo Mourinho Félix, vice president of European Investment Bank, said: “Sustainable transport investment means greener infrastructure for a future without fossil fuels. The EIB is pleased to extend financing to Cabify to decarbonise urban transport via the electrification of car fleets for ride-hailing services in Spain.”
Cabify will begin the next phase of its EV roll out in the first three months of 2023, by launching a call for tenders on appropriate EVs and charging infrastructures.
The EVs must have an operating range of at least 400km as well as being up to passenger transport spec. They should also have the ability to use “fast chargers” that Cabify plans to leverage from its dedicated charging network.
By the end of this decade, EIB expects to have supported the deployment of at least 30 million zero-emission cars on European roads thanks to its sustainable and smart mobility strategy.
Cabify is doubling down on its climate credentials having joined the UN Global Compact and started purchasing offsets for all of its carbon emissions in 2018.
The platform has more than 42 million registered users and 1.2 million collaborating drivers and taxi drivers across Spain as well as in Latin America, in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay.
Juan de Antonio, CEO of Cabify, added: “At Cabify, we are committed to accelerating the green transition in urban mobility in every market we operate.
“This is our core, making cities better places to live, and sustainable mobility is key for that to happen. The decarbonization of our fleet in Spain plays a central role in this commitment, and the European Investment Bank’s support proves this progress’s strategic impact.”
