LONDON: Shell Plc agreed to buy US electric-vehicle charging firm Volta Inc. as the fossil-fuel giant works to keep pace with the transition to low-carbon mobility.
The US$169 million takeover of Volta - which installs chargers with large video advertising screens at grocery stores, office buildings and elsewhere - is emblematic of an accelerating shift in focus for a company that has relied on a vast network of traditional filling stations to reach customers.
Shell USA will buy Volta for 86 US cents a share in cash, the San Francisco-based charging firm said Wednesday in a statement. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of this year.
Volta, which went public in 2021 through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, has struggled in the past year, with its two top executives abruptly exiting last March.
The firm issued a going-concern warning in May as cash reserves dwindled and fired more than half its workforce to stabilise its finances.
Volta is one of several clean-technology startups including Eos Energy Enerterprises Inc., EVgo and Sunlight Financial Holdings Inc. that went public via SPAC deals in recent years, only to see their shares tumble as investors soured on their products or business models.
The acquisition is part of Shell’s efforts to prepare for a world in which oil consumption ebbs as more industries electrify and people ditch combustion-engine cars.
Volta has set up more than 3,000 charging points with partners including supermarket Kroger Co., the Oracle Arena in San Francisco and Six Flags Theme Parks Inc.
"Both Volta and Shell have a demonstrated ability to meet the changing needs of customers, and this acquisition will bring that experience together to provide the options that are needed as more drivers choose electric,” Vince Cubbage, Volta’s interim chief executive officer, said in a statement.
