EDF acquires electric car charging firm Pod Point in £100m deal
EDF has bought a majority stake in electric vehicle charging point manufacturer Pod Point as part of a deal worth more than £100m, Morning Wire understands.
The tie-up also forms part of a new joint venture with Legal & General Capital, in which the latter will also take a 23 per cent stake in Pod Point.
Talks between the startup and the French state-backed energy giant had been ongoing for some time. The deal will provide EDF with a more enticing proposition to the growing market for renewably-powered vehicles, with around 1,700 public charging points to now coincide with its existing electric vehicle tariffs.
Pod Point chief executive Erik Fairbairn said: “Our shareholders believed in our vision that travel shouldn’t exacerbate carbon emissions and I’m delighted we can repay them with a return on their investment.”
Pod Point had previously struck deals with the likes of Peugeot-owner PSA, and had raised funding on UK platforms Crowdcube and Seedrs six times since its founding in 2009.
For Crowdcube the deal represents its biggest exit to date, topping AB Inbev’s £85m acquisition of Camden Town Brewery. It follows the news yesterday that Crowdcube had surpassed £8m in revenue for the first time in 2019.
Simone Rossi, EDF’s UK chief executive, said: “Electric vehicles will be crucial in reducing the UK’s carbon emissions and fighting climate change. With the addition of charge points, we can help our customers to reduce their carbon footprints and benefit from lower fuel costs by going electric.
“The additional electricity demand from EVs will require urgent investment in low carbon generation from renewables and nuclear.”