The owner of the UK’s largest public electric vehicle charging network, Ubitricity, is soon to be owned by Royal Dutch Shell. Expected to complete sometime in 2021, the sale will include ubitricity’s more than 2,700 charge points
So what?
Shell’s ambition to become a net zero energy company, coupled with ever-approaching ICE bans across Europe and the UK, mean that energy companies are scrambling to make infrastructure and human resource investments to deliver on these promises, while also turning a profit. EV sales are seeing exponential growth around the world, and if Shell is to become an energy or energy services company, the charging infrastructure for these vehicles will be key.
Does this acquisition signal a consolidation of new renewable energy and EV transportation companies under familiar names like Royal Dutch Shell? Or, will the future of energy and transportation be a mosaic of new names and old names who made the requisite investments early-enough to compete? What might the benefits of oil super-majors driving the transition be, and, what might be the benefits of new companies growing and driving the transition be?
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