Wattif EV secures financing for €50 million
Norwegian charging station provider Wattif EV has closed a 50-million-euro investment from Marguerite, one of Europe’s largest investment fund managers for sustainable infrastructure projects. Marguerite is including Wattif EV in the portfolio of its latest fund, Marguerite III.
Wattif said in a statement that the investment supports its growth and investment plans and goal to become the leading provider of charging stations in Europe. The plan is to rapidly build more than 120,000 new charging stations for electric cars, supported by an expanded sales team in key European automotive markets.
Wattif EV’s business model calls for net revenues to be shared with the site owner, depending on the partnership model. The company says its proprietary software is compatible with “a wide range of available hardware.” The Norwegian company attributes this approach to having won “several large projects” by the end of 2022.
Whatif currently operates in Norway, Sweden, Germany, Austria, Ireland and the UK. In March last year, Wattif EV and Smart Parkering Sverige signed a cooperation agreement to provide charging facilities for 250,000 parking spaces in Sweden. The planned parking spaces are almost all spaces managed by Smart Parkering Sverige.
Wattif EV has been active in Germany since September 2022 and founded Wattif Europe GmbH, based in Braunschweig, for this purpose. In November, the company announced its entry into the Austrian market and the corresponding opening of an office in Innsbruck.
Jörg Koch-Losekamm, managing director of Wattif Europe GmbH explained that the company offers a complete package, from planning and installation to operation and billing. “In addition, we can also take over the investment costs to keep the hurdles for expansion low,” he said. “The rapid growth since our foundation and the great interest of our customers confirm that we are operating and growing in a timely and successful manner with our partnership model.”
“Marguerite’s investment is of significant value to Wattif at a pivotal time for us, with changes in European EV legislation and EV transport requirements foreseen over the next 5 to 10 years,” says Wattif CEO Robert Svendsen. “The timing is perfect and helps Wattif EV in enabling change now and will therefore be of influence in delivering sustainable driving behaviour and contributing to net zero targets”
