Chargemaster Plc to acquire Elektromotive

Chargemaster Plc, the UK’s leading provider of electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, is pleased to announce that is has reached an agreement to acquire Elektromotive Limited ("Elektromotive"), the Brighton-based company that was the first to introduce public EV charging stations in the UK nearly 10 years ago.

The acquisition is subject to approval by the shareholders of the Singapore based holding company of Elektromotive, Elektromotive Group Ltd, listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange, and this approval is expected to be granted in the coming months. The Acquisition is being recommended to shareholders by the board of Elektromotive Group Ltd. The agreed purchase consideration is £8.5 million in cash.

Post acquisition, the Enlarged Group will be a leading European provider of EV charging infrastructure and this scale will enable the Group to compete on an international level. The combination of Elektromotive and Chargemaster is highly complementary and will form a financially, technically and operationally strong platform from which to further expand internationally. Chargemaster has already a strong sales base in France, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria and Switzerland which complements Elektromotive’s strengths in Belgium and other European countries. Chargemaster is pleased that a British company will now have the scale to compete successfully against divisions of major international players entering this marketplace such as Schneider in France and Siemens and RWE in Germany.

Over the next eight years the majority of car manufacturers will bring out an electric or plug in hybrid car. To meet this development the European market for charging equipment is growing rapidly, EV charging point sales in Europe are expected to grow 20 fold over the next eight years and to be worth some €1.2 billion by 2020. The market is currently increasing at an annual compound growth rate of 40% (source: Pike Research, Electric Vehicle Charging Equipment in Europe, Q3 2012). The Directors of Chargemaster anticipate that this acquisition will ensure the Enlarged Group is in a robust position to take advantage of this growth. The Group will be one of the largest if not the largest (by sales volume) of charging units in Europe.

Access to Chargemaster’s technology and manufacturing processes will enable Elektromotive to reduce production costs and the consolidation will reduce overheads for the Enlarged Group. It is the intention that the two brands will continue to be marketed in parallel and the economies of scale will enable the Enlarged Group to become increasingly competitive in terms of pricing, in a marketplace where it is expected that rapid growth will be driven by reducing prices.

The Elektromotive brand has strengths in many geographical territories that complement Chargemaster’s geographical focus, including overseas in Ireland, Belgium, and Asia; the London Boroughs and the North East of England and in Scotland in the UK. Elektromotive also has over 15 re-seller distribution partners globally.

Chargemaster, with its strong presence in London, Southern England and the Midlands, the Netherlands and France, has built an impressive portfolio of some 30 products. The company has secured key motor manufacturer partners such as Nissan, Renault, Vauxhall and Toyota, as well as partnerships with energy companies such as British Gas and SSE. The Company’s products serve every sector of the EV charging market, from rapid charging units capable of re-charging EVs in under 30 minutes to attractive low cost overnight domestic charging.

Chargemaster owns and operates the POLAR recharging network, which it launched in 2011 and which subsequently has grown to become the UK’s largest national recharging network. In 2012 Elektromotive launched Charge Your Car, a joint venture to create an advanced central charge point management system to be offered to the market on a branded and a white label basis, designed to connect existing regional recharging networks and charge point owners across the UK, enabling them to access all EV drivers and collect revenues on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Elektromotive has some of the most talented and knowledgeable personnel in the industry and they will be continuing with the Enlarged Group working alongside the experienced Chargemaster team. The combined management team is undoubtedly one of the most experienced worldwide in the electric vehicle charging industry.

David Martell, CEO of Chargemaster, said: "I am delighted that we have reached this agreement with Elektromotive; the two companies target highly complementary sectors of the market and offer synergistic product ranges. The Enlarged Group can now focus on growing its market share across Europe by producing the most technically advanced and value for money charging units on the market."

Calvey Taylor-Haw, Managing Director of Elektromotive, commented: “This is an extremely positive deal, not only for the two companies but also for the industry and customers. I have respected the market drive and innovative technology that Chargemaster has brought to the sector over the last few years and my senior management team and I look forward to working with David and the rest of his team in making the Enlarged Group a worldwide force in this exciting and rapidly growing market.”