Vivarail has confirmed that they have secured a £1.5m loan from the Midlands Engine Investment Fund Debt Finance, which is managed by Maven Capital Partners.

The train manufacturer will use the boost in finance to pursue new growth by relocating to a bigger site to scale up operations.

Its workforce will also be expanded with five new jobs set to be created.

Vivarail takes old London Underground trains and makes them into new trains with diesel or battery power. Vivarail has already taken orders from West Midlands Trains Ltd (for use on London North Western Railway services, which are now in operation), Transport for Wales and South Western Railway.

Ian Wenman, Finance Director at Vivarail said, “We are delighted to receive this funding package from MEIF Maven Debt Finance. As a business, our focus is to continue to develop environmentally friendly solutions for the rail industry. We look forward to taking this next step in our growth journey, relocating to a larger site and expanding our team.”

Demetri Theofanou, Investment Manager at Maven said, “Vivarail is a significant Midlands-based business that has developed some very interesting technology that will help the rail sector reduce its environmental impact and carbon footprint. We are delighted to help finance this innovative business and look forward to seeing it embark on its growth journey.”

Ryan Cartwright, Senior Manager at the British Business Bank, said, “The Midlands is a hotbed of innovation and it’s good to see businesses like Vivarail highlighting the progress being made in the development of green transport solutions. With the support of this MEIF finance, the firm will be able to move to a larger facility and create new jobs, demonstrating how the Fund continues to help businesses in the Midlands progress their long-term growth plans.”

Sean Farnell, a board director at the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP), said, “Transport innovation is one of the key strengths of Coventry and Warwickshire and the exciting work of Vivarail will have an important part to play in improving carbon emissions. This funding is not only helping Vivarail to move to new premises and create jobs to boost the economy, it is helping the rail industry to make giant strides forward to provide more sustainable transport.”

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