Mirova Invests In Zunder In Order To Accelerate EV Charger Rollout In Southern Europe

 Zunder raises €100 million from Mirova to accelerate EV charger rollout in Southern Europe

• Equity investment to speed up plan to surpass 4,000 charging points in Southern Europe
• Zunder is already the largest independent EV¹ ultra-fast-charging operator in Iberia
• Early backers White Summit Capital and Co-Investors remain as majority shareholder after raise

Spanish electric vehicle charging company Zunder has raised €100 million from French sustainable investment manager Mirova, an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers, in a bid to accelerate its roll-out of ultra-fast EV charging stations across Southern Europe.

Zunder, founded in 2017 by e-mobility entrepreneur Daniel Pérez, has quickly established itself as the leading independent EV charging infrastructure operator in the Iberian Peninsula after receiving early backing from energy and infrastructure investment firm White Summit Capital and Co-Investors. The latest investment round will speed up Zunder’s plan to surpass 4,000 ultrafast charging points across Southern Europe.

The electric mobility market is rapidly developing throughout Europe, and Spain is no exception. Electric car sales jumped 238%² during the first three quarters of 2022 compared to year end 2021 figures. Spain has a target to reach over 5 million EVs by 2030, up from about 300,000 currently. And the need for robust fast-charging public infrastructure is particularly high, given that over 70% of Spanish households do not have access to private off-street parking³.

Zunder, voted the best-rated company by users in its market⁴, has seen exponential growth since 2020 driven by its in-house developed location selection technology, focus on ultra-fast charging, and an industry-leading app, enabling long distance electric travel and eliminating “range anxiety” for thousands of EV customers across Spain. After recently winning its first public tender in France, the company continues its international expansion and has ambitions to own and operate over 4,000 charging points and manage over 40,000 through its platform by 2025 with a capex plan of over €300m over that period

Daniel Perez, CEO of Zunder, comments: “Zunder is changing the way we move. Our mission to expand ultra-fast charging is critical to enable seamless EV adoption in Southern Europe. We are delighted, and will propose it to our shareholders, to welcome Mirova as a shareholder in this deal, reaffirming our vision, strategy, business model and values, paving the way for Zunder’s multi-billion deployment plan over the next decade”.

Mirova is a global management company dedicated to sustainable investment with €25bn assets under management⁵ that offers its clients investment solutions that combine the search for financial performance with environmental and social impact. Zunder’s equity investment reaffirms Mirova’s commitment towards the electrification of transport and EV charging infrastructure after its investment in leading French EV charging player Driveco in 2020.

Witold Marais, Investment Director at Mirova, “The decarbonation of mobility and transportation is critical to the net zero pathway, and it is therefore core to our investment strategy. Having been involved in the EV charging infrastructure space since 2019, we value Zunder’s positioning, premium quality service, and ambition to become a leading fast-charging network operator across Southern Europe”.

Via this initial €100m equity investment, Mirova secures a minority interest in the company, while WSC and Co-Investors remain as majority shareholders.

Zunder is backed by White Summit Capital, a Switzerland-based investor and asset manager specialised in sustainable energy infrastructure, with over €1.5bn of assets under management⁶. WSC focuses on deploying capital into opportunities with strong decarbonisation and sustainability vectors.

Alexandra Chenguelly, Principal at WSC, says: “White Summit Capital invested in Zunder with the goal of decarbonising the private transport sector. Partnering with a team of passionate experts and, developing a unique, differentiated and robust business model has been key to the company’s success to date. We are delighted to welcome our new partner Mirova, who not only shares our ambitious sustainability focus but will now help us to accelerate the growth and internationalisation of Zunder”.

The equity investment is pending approval from Zunder EGM which is set to receive the approval of WSC and Co-Investors. Mediobanca and Uria acted respectively as Financial and Legal Advisors of Zunder. Acron Beka and Cuatrecasas advised Mirova.

For further reading:

• Financing the Necessary Ecological Transition of Transport

[1] EV: Electric Vehicles
[2] Source: AEDIVE (Asociación Empresarial para el Desarrollo e Impulso de la Movilidad Eléctrica) 3Q 2022 EV registrations
[3] Source: INE (Spanish National Statistical Institute)
[4] Source: AUVE Awards 2022
[5] Mirova and its affiliates as of June 30, 2022
[6] Assets Under Management and Managed Investments