- Blink Charging announced it is buying SemaConnect for $200 million. This is why.
Blink Charging Co. (Nasdaq: BLNK) – a leading owner, operator, and provider of electric vehicle (EV) charging equipment and services – announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire SemaConnect, a leading provider of EV charging infrastructure solutions in North America, for $200 million, subject to certain customary adjustments for working capital. The cash and common stock transaction will add nearly 13,000 EV chargers to Blink’s existing footprint, an additional 3,800 site host locations, and over 150,000 registered EV driver members.
Through this acquisition, Blink Charging will be the only EV charging company to offer complete vertical integration from research & development and manufacturing to EV charger ownership and operations. And this vertical integration creates unparalleled opportunities for Blink to control its supply chain and accelerate its go-to-market speed while reducing operating costs.
Blink is going to benefit from SemaConnect’s in-house research & development, hardware design, and manufacturing capabilities. SemaConnect’s manufacturing facility in Maryland will allow Blink to comply with the Buy American mandates and position itself to significantly capitalize on the $7.5 billion Biden Administration EV infrastructure bill and assist with the Administration’s goal to build out the first-ever national network of 500,000 electric vehicle chargers along America’s highways and in communities. This acquisition will also position Blink to assist the administration’s development of a national EV charging network that provides interoperability among different charging companies and it is user-friendly, reliable, and accessible to all Americans.
Blink plans to transition SemaConnect’s chargers to a single state-of-the-art network developed by a joint engineering team, which nearly doubles with this acquisition. And the addition of the SemaConnect hardware will accelerate Blink’s expansion across multiple municipalities and geographies, including California where SemaConnect chargers already comply with local requirements for swipe credit card functionality.
Launched in 2008, SemaConnect is a market leader with a diverse suite of products, including Level 2 and DC Fast chargers, and charging-as-a-service program which provides a full package of EV charging solutions. And SemaConnect’s hardware and software solutions reach a wide range of critical EV charging customers across municipal, parking, multifamily, hotel, office, retail and commercial in the U.S. and Canada. The major customers include CBRE, JLL, Hines, Greystar, AvalonBay Communities, Cisco Systems, General Electric, and several others.
Mahi Reddy from SemaConnect is expected to join the Blink Board of Directors. And the SemaConnect acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions.
KEY QUOTES:
“This is a transformative acquisition for the EV charging industry and for Blink. SemaConnect is an established and well-known EV charging company with a proven track record of success, strong relationships with its site host partners in both the public and private sectors, and best-in-class technical capabilities.”
“SemaConnect has a robust hardware product line-up which complements Blink’s extensive software product offerings. This includes our multi-language and multi-currency network, allowing Blink to have an EV charging station for any location across more than 20 countries and expanding,” said Farkas. “In addition, we are particularly excited about the DCFC charger being developed by SemaConnect. These efforts allow Blink to significantly accelerate our DCFC speed to market while drastically reducing our R&D costs.”
“With complementary values, business models, and equipment, SemaConnect was an ideal acquisition target for Blink. This acquisition brings to Blink top talent from the industry. By adding the SemaConnect team to its ranks, Blink is building an industry leading EV charging company. We welcome the SemaConnect team to the Blink family.”
“With this acquisition and Blink’s recent past acquisitions, including EB Charging and Blue Corner in Europe, we have significantly expanded and strengthened our position as a global leader in the EV space.”
— Michael D. Farkas, Founder and CEO of Blink Charging
“Like Blink, SemaConnect has been a leader in the EV charging industry since its early days, and the combination of our expertise will enable us to scale the deployment of EV infrastructure even more quickly and efficiently. We are excited to join Blink as we charge ahead in transforming the EV charging industry with flexible, reliable, and innovative solutions for customers around the globe.”
— Mahi Reddy, Founder and CEO of SemaConnect
