Fortum has signed an agreement to sell a majority share of its public charging point operator (CPO), Fortum Recharge AS, for electrical vehicles in the Nordics to Infracapital, the infrastructure equity investment arm of M&G Plc. After the transaction Fortum’s ownership in Recharge will be 37%. Recharge is the largest CPO in the Nordics, owning close to 1,300 public charging points and operating an additional 1,400 charging points in Norway, Finland, and Sweden.

The partnership will create a shared ownership structure designed to accelerate Recharge’s growth plans in the public CPO market and reaffirm its market leading position. At the same time, the transaction will release capital for further growth in this partnership and in services provided to Fortum’s mobility customers.

Fortum will continue to own and offer its leading mobility services for digital public charging, as well as home and destination charging services under its Charge&Drive and Plugsurfing brands. Fortum further continues to offer software as a service (SaaS) for operating electrical vehicles (EV) charging infrastructure networks and customer interfaces to other CPOs.

The Nordic countries are among the most advanced and fastest growing EV markets globally. The development is strongly supported by government policy and ambitious decarbonisation targets. Consequently, there is a significant demand for public fast EV charging infrastructure in the region as mass adoption of EVs continues.

“This is a great opportunity to partner up with Infracapital, which allows us to grow Recharge substantially. For Fortum this is also a success story as it proves the value of the market leading Nordic charging services we have built over recent years. Together with Infracapital, we look forward to realising the full potential of Recharge in this high-growth sector,” says Arun Aggarwal, SVP, Business Technology at Fortum.

“Infracapital is committed to supporting Europe’s transition to a low-carbon economy while delivering value and sustainable growth for our investors. It is clear that EV will play a critical role in reducing carbon emissions and we are thrilled to have secured a high-quality entry point into this market, working with Fortum, a leading clean-energy partner with a significant local presence and growth potential,” says Christophe Bordes, Managing Director at Infracapital.

The enterprise value corresponding to 100% of Recharge is approximately EUR 140 million. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2020.