Thousands of new charging stations in Europe: The charging network operator Ionity wants to significantly expand its network of climate-neutral fast charging stations with an investment in the three-digit million range. The US investor Blackrock enters the business.
Ionity is planning a massive expansion of its fast charging network with the help of a cash injection of 700 million euros from US investor Blackrock. The charging network operator for electric cars wants to more than quadruple the number of charging stations by 2025. This should increase them to around 7,000.
The number of the Europe-wide network of currently 400 charging parks is to grow to over 1000, with all of them being fast chargers with a charging capacity of 350 kilowatt hours. The electricity offered should still come exclusively from renewable energies. “The electrification of the mobility sector is crucial in order to achieve the increasingly pressing climate targets,” the press release said.
An average of six to twelve charging stations are planned. In addition, existing locations are to be upgraded depending on demand. In addition to charging points on the motorway, Ionity also wants to create charging options near major cities and on busy highways in the future.
The need for public charging points in the EU will, however, still not be met by a long way. According to estimates by the European automobile association ACEA, six million plugs will be required by 2030 in order to cut the CO2 emissions of new vehicles by half with the switch to electromobility. At the moment the number is just under 225,000 – stationed particularly in Western Europe.
First participation from a non-car industry
The joint venture Ionity, founded in 2017, in which Audi, Porsche, VW, BMW, Daimler, Ford and Hyundai have joined forces, currently operates more than 1500 charging points along motorways in 24 European countries. Its charging stations are available to drivers of all electric cars.
Blackrock is the first non-automotive company to acquire a stake in Ionity. Ionity did not disclose how the financing round is broken down in detail. “It is precisely the connection between the energy and mobility sectors that makes Ionity an attractive investment,” says Michael Hajesch, CEO of Ionity. “Electric vehicle charging infrastructure is critical to achieving a Net Zero future,” commented David Giordano, Blackrock Global Head of Renewable Power. Ionity stands out from other companies in terms of the maturity of the company and the maturity of the existing partnerships. According to Hajesch, Ionity has not yet made a profit. “We still need some time to become profitable, but we are on track,” said the CEO.
Ionity wants to build its own rest stops with charging stations
Meanwhile, Hajesch announced as part of the expansion plan that Ionity will probably look for other manufacturers for its hardware, which so far has mainly been built by the Swiss technology group ABB and the Australian company Tritium.
Ionity also wants to acquire more of its own land and, depending on the local conditions, build and operate its own rest stops for its new “Oasis” station concept.
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Source From: Stern
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