Norwegian EV charging firm Easee is set for new majority ownership, after long-standing shareholder Brødrene Jensen acquired 100% of the company with financing from AWC.
The structure of the deal is slightly more complicated than a straightforward takeover. Brødrene Jensen has acquired the company, but AWC is expected to become Easee’s majority owner once the transaction receives approval from the relevant authorities.
That makes AWC’s involvement the more significant part of the transaction. While Brødrene Jensen has led the acquisition, AWC’s role as future majority owner means Easee is effectively being brought under the control of a larger industrial investment group, rather than simply remaining with an existing shareholder.
AWC isn’t massively well known in the UK, but the firm is wholly owned by Awilhelmsen, a Norwegian family-owned investment company. That company has deep pockets, having co-founded cruise giant Royal Caribbean Group in 1968.
Brødrene Jensen is a significantly smaller Norwegian investment firm, but it has been a long-standing investor in Easee, having joined the board back in 2019.
By bringing AWC onboard, the deal has a little more weight than a simple change in shareholder register. That’s because Easee is gaining access to patient capital at a time when the European EV charging market is becoming more competitive, more capital intensive, and increasingly consolidated.
Easee currently has more than one million chargers installed across homes, workplaces and commercial sites, giving it a sizeable footprint in the European EV charging market. The company has also been expanding its role in the wider energy ecosystem through connected charging and energy management services.
However, the company has had to navigate a turbulent few years. In 2023, Swedish authorities imposed a sales ban on its Home and Charge products following concerns around technical documentation and product compliance. Easee later withdrew its lawsuit against the Swedish regulator, while maintaining that it wanted to prioritise safety, compliance and dialogue.
The Swedish Electrical Safety Authority has since discontinued its supervisory proceedings against the Easee Home and Easee Charge products, but the episode still underlined how quickly fortunes can change in the EV charging sector.
That makes this latest transaction more than just a routine ownership change. It gives Easee a more focused ownership structure as it looks to accelerate investment in technology and growth across European markets and beyond.
It also comes at a time when consolidation in the EV charging market is beginning to accelerate. We’ve recently covered Pod’s acquisition of EO Charging after it fell into administration, as well as Connected Kerb’s acquisition of Trojan Energy’s EV charging assets.
While those deals had very different circumstances, with both EO Charging and Trojan Energy entering administration before being picked up by larger players, they highlight the ongoing challenges that face firms in the increasingly competitive EV charging market. It also showcases the direction of travel for the industry, after all, as the EV charging market matures, companies with scale, software capability and access to capital are increasingly likely to pull ahead.
Anthony Fernandez, CEO of Easee, noted, “Completing this transaction marks an important milestone and reflects the progress the business has made. It gives us the platform to make bolder moves, accelerate our growth and build a truly global position in smart charging and energy. Our new owners believe in what we have built, and we look forward to writing the next chapter together.”
Despite coming under new ownership, Easee will continue to operate as an independent company under its own name and with the same strategic direction.
