Chinese NaaS acquires Sweden’s Charge Amps

Swedish tech company Charge Amps is in Chinese hands after NaaS Technology acquired the company for 724 million kronor (66.4 million dollars). NaaS runs an extensive network in China with over half a million charge points and scored another significant cooperation.

Staying with the deal at hand, Charge Amps first became known for its temperature-sensing cable Ray launched as early as 2016. The current portfolio also lists full EV chargers and accessories.

As for the acquisition, the company hopes NaaS will help expedite its ongoing expansion and growth plans. Charge Amps will continue trading under the same name and brand.

Olle Tholander, CEO of Charge Amps, comments: “We believe that NaaS has both the expertise and financial strength to support Charge Amps’ growth journey under the same brand in Europe.” He also hopes that NaaS’ extended product portfolio will enable the company “to bring more competitive and purposeful solutions to users”.

NaaS Technology is a charging services subsidiary of energy digitalisation group Newlinks Technology and has been listed on Nasdaq since June 2022.

By acquiring Charge Amps, Naas wants to get a foothold in Europe. Founded in 2012 in Stockholm, Charge Amps now has 120 employees in seven countries and claims sales across 15 markets.

President and CFO of NaaS, Alex Wu, says, “We are most optimistic about the prospects of EV penetration in Europe and the overall charging service capacity.” He also mentioned an “integration plan that will see new products launched through the Charge Amps channels” but disclosed no further details.

NaaS provides charging station operators and EV owners with online and offline charging solutions and non-charging value-added services.

In this, the company scored a major deal – the Hyundai Motor Group wants NaaS to develop efficient charging management services for Hyundai car owners in China.

The partnership lists services such as real-time charging and charger installation monitoring through a smart service App or at the centre console.

“Charging facilities as a significant component of new infrastructure serves a crucial role in improving the penetration of EVs,” Wang Yang, Founder and CEO of NaaS, said. “Partnered with new energy industry chain players, NaaS will engage users in faster, easier and more cost-effective charging service, and work with Hyundai Motor Group to spur the upgrade of charging services.”

As for Hyundai, the China branch seems most concerned with accessing the NaaS network and services. As of 31 March 2023, over 575,000 charging points at 55,000 locations were connected to NaaS’s network in China.

Hyuk Joon Lee, President and Head of China Operations at Hyundai, said China not only had “outstanding performance in EV sales and quantity of charging infrastructure built but also excels in EV service quality”. He added the partnership would provide a “valuable reference for Hyundai’s action of advancing EV service in the global market”.

chargeamps.com, prnewswire.com (Charge Amps), enaas.com (Hyundai)