What good is an electric forklift if you can’t charge it at the right time, in the right way, at the right site?
It’s the question behind most electrification failures. Batteries get the attention, but energy systems determine uptime, TCO and whether a fleet transition succeeds. This systems-first approach has shaped maxwell+spark from the start, and in 2025 it earned powerful validation: despite one of the toughest fundraising years in a decade, Klima, Chevron Technology Ventures and Idemitsu invested. Their backing reflects a belief that the future of forklift electrification lies with companies engineering the charging, data and energy ecosystems around the battery.
Who is maxwell+spark?
maxwell+spark is an engineering-first lithium-ion technology company specialising in modular LFP systems for industrial mobility. With nearly 50 engineers across Europe, the US and South Africa, the company focuses on the operational realities that determine electrification success: uptime, charging, lifecycle cost and system integration. Founded in 2017 in South Africa, maxwell+spark’s systems now power forklift fleets and transport refrigeration units worldwide.
A Year of Market Validation
The USD 15 million Series B raise was the defining story of 2025 — notable not only for its size, but for its timing. With global investment slowing sharply, many industrial technology companies struggled to close rounds, yet maxwell+spark received multiple offers. Klima reinforced the company’s engineering trajectory in Europe, while Chevron Technology Ventures and Idemitsu signalled strategic belief from major energy players in the US and Asia. For forklift operators, the message is clear: this investment targets electrification that works in real operations, not just in principle.
Why Forklift Electrification is a Systems Challenge
A persistent misconception is that electric forklift adoption is primarily a battery decision. In practice, most issues begin after the equipment arrives on site.
1. Charging makes or breaks uptime
Many operators underestimate how complex charging becomes when managing fleets of 50, 100 or even 500 forklifts. Peak loads, shift patterns, grid constraints and charger placement all influence whether an electric fleet delivers the uptime and cost efficiency it promises. maxwell+spark’s approach is to keep charging simple and robust, avoiding shortcuts that introduce new points of failure rather than solving real operational challenges.
2. Energy integration now defines TCO
Forklifts no longer operate independently of a site’s energy system. Many customers now have electric forklifts, electric refrigerated trucks, rooftop solar, stationary storage and time-of-day tariffs — all influenced by weather and operational cycles. Without integrated data linking these elements, it becomes impossible to optimise battery size, charger speed, fleet capacity or overall energy cost. For industries on narrow margins, energy has become one of their biggest and most variable expenses.
3. Reliability First — a design philosophy
At maxwell+spark, reliability isn’t an aspiration — it’s a design rule. In 2025, real-world fleet performance reinforced that every engineering trade-off must follow one principle: never sacrifice reliability for price. Building reliability is easy when cost is no object; the challenge is delivering it competitively.
This year also showed that reliability extends well beyond hardware — into design, manufacturing and QC, after-sales support, software, data integration and customer relationships. Uptime is the ultimate proof, and 2025 made clear that without it, electrification cannot deliver its TCO advantage.
What We Learned from Early Adopters
Two insights stood out in 2025:
- Cost savings exceeded expectations.
Fleets saw significant reductions in downtime, maintenance hours and operational disruption.
- Every meaningful innovation originated in a customer pain point.
Thermal management, vibration resistance and serviceability were shaped by real-world bottlenecks. Customer challenges are treated as core design inputs, not optional requests.
Circularity and Asset Longevity
If 2025 highlighted anything about circularity, it’s how tangible its benefits have become for forklift operations. Lithium-ion batteries built by maxwell+spark in 2018 — field-tested in temperatures from -25°C to +40°C — continue to operate with minimal degradation. Many entered their second machines this year, with capacity for a third life before moving into stationary storage.
These long life cycles stand in sharp contrast to disposable lead-acid systems and the inherently wasteful nature of diesel. The result for operators in 2025 was clear: fewer replacements, lower total cost of ownership and significantly less downtime.
Looking Ahead to 2026
The year ahead will focus on acceleration rather than reinvention:
- United States: expanding operations and partnerships
- Europe: deepening cold-chain pilots and scaling materials handling batteries into the UK
- South Africa: building on already strong momentum
- Products: iterative improvements driven by customer data and operational insights
Customers can expect more focus, more structure and more pace — a consolidation of the momentum built throughout 2025.