DKV Mobility and Smartlab enter into strategic partnership
DKV Mobility acquires majority stake in Smartlab, a leading SaaS platform in the field of e-mobility in Germany
Ratingen, 28 November 2024. DKV Mobility, a leading platform for international mobility services, and smartlab Innovationsgesellschaft mbH ("Smartlab"), the e-mobility market leader for the aggregation, management and billing of charging systems, are joining forces. To this end, DKV Mobility is acquiring a majority stake in one of the most successful tech start-ups in the field of e-mobility in recent years. With this strategic partnership, DKV Mobility is further expanding its leading role as a SaaS platform operator in e-mobility.
Together with the co-partners Thüga Aktiengesellschaft, energy swabia limited liability company and BEB GmbH DKV Mobility would like to accelerate the further technical development and growth of Smartlab. In particular, the focus will be on expanding the charging points operated on Smartlab's SaaS platform, strengthening e-clearing.net as a leading roaming gateway and further developing Smartlab as an e-Mobility Service Provider (eMSP). Through this strategic partnership, DKV Mobility is expanding its platform for e-mobility to more than 177,000 actively managed charging points and more than 910,000 charging cards and processes over 900 million kWh of charging current. DKV Mobility underlines its leading position in the mobility transition and offers its customers one of Europe's largest roaming networks of over 827,000 charging points.
Marco van Kalleveen, CEO of DKV Mobility, says: "Smartlab is one of the most dynamic and successful companies in the field of municipal charging infrastructure in Germany and can look back on an impressive development. Smartlab adds outstanding solutions to our existing platform offering and provides the opportunity to offer our platform customers even better customised services in the future. By investing in Smartlab, DKV Mobility is strengthening its ambition to further advance electromobility in Europe."
Dr Mark Steffen Walcher, Managing Director of Smartlab, adds: "We are very pleased to have found a partner in DKV Mobility that has been committed to electromobility from the outset and now plays a significant role in this sector. DKV Mobility, together with Smartlab, is the ideal partner for our municipal sector in particular, where we are a leader."
Dr Christoph Ullmer, representative of Smartlab's shareholders and Head of Innovation at Thüga AG, says: "DKV Mobility is a strong partner with experience. Together we can successfully develop Smartlab's business further. The approximately 100 municipal utilities and regional suppliers in the Thüga Group will also benefit from an expanded and scaled offering."
Smartlab operates one of the largest public charging networks in Germany and has a total of more than 26,800 connected charging points. Founded in 2010, the company operates brands including ladenetz.de and loading business, which include an extensive cooperation network with over 275 municipal energy suppliers and more than 190 tradespeople from various sectors. This development would not have been possible without the twelve years of trust and support from the existing shareholders STAWAG and Stadtwerke Osnabrück, as well as the degrees of freedom granted during this time. Smartlab enables the smooth operation of charging infrastructure and billing of end users. Smartlab also operates the internationally orientated roaming platform e-clearing.netone of the market leaders in roaming in Germany and Europe.
The transaction is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approval. The partners have agreed not to disclose details of the transaction.
About DKV Mobility*
With ~384,000 active customers in more than 50 service countries across Europe and ~2,500 employees, DKV Mobility is the leading B2B platform for on-the-road payment solutions with a growth history of ~90 years. We offer access to the largest energy-independent acceptance network in Europe, comprising ~68,000 conventional refuelling stations, ~827,000 EV charging points and ~23,000 alternative fuel stations. In addition, DKV Mobility is a leading provider of toll solutions in Europe and offers mobility solutions such as vehicle services at ~34,000 acceptance points and innovative digital solutions. Based on our revenue from financial solutions, we are a leading provider of VAT refund services. In 2023, DKV Mobility generated a transaction volume of € 17 billion and a turnover of € 714 million. Our corporate purpose is: To drive the transition towards an efficient and sustainable future of mobility.
*All data as at 09/2024, unless otherwise stated.
Press contact:
Robin Hagenmüller
Manager Corporate Communications
Balcke-Dürr-Allee 3
40882 Ratingen
Mobile +49 152 52840 972
robin.hagenmueller@dkv-mobility.com
About SMART/LAB Innovationsgesellschaft mbH
SMART/LAB Innovationsgesellschaft mbH is a DKV Mobility company, Thüga Aktiengesellschaft, energy swabia limited liability company and BEB GmbH. Together, we develop innovative concepts in the fields of smart grids and e-mobility. With currently over 24,300 publicly accessible charging points from its own network in Germany and 365,000 Europe-wide charging points from roaming agreements, SMART/LAB has been the market leader in the field of public charging for many years now. As an IT service provider, we offer comprehensive products for the operation and billing of charging infrastructure as well as the billing of its end users.
Press contact:
Ann Sarlette | E: presse@smartlab-gmbh.de
