The progress of electric mobility in Spain is irreversible, supported by government investments aimed at encouraging foreign eMobility companies to establish themselves in the country.
However, Mobility Portal España has recently learned that some companies have decided to withdraw from the local market.
A clear example is Charge Amps, the Swedish manufacturer of smart chargers for electric vehicles, which began distributing its products in Spain in 2021.
According to discussions within the sector, this decision is closely linked to the loss of significant funding that the firm had previously received.
What is this actually about? An investment of 150 million Swedish crowns (14.5 million euros) aimed at expanding its presence in Europe.
This funding was intended to meet the demand for shippers on the continent, with particular emphasis on the United Kingdom, Germany and Spain, where it had opened new offices.
The funds come from shareholders such as Ok Ekonomisk Förening, Skellefteå Kraft and Swedbank Robur, as well as from new investors such as Concejo AB, LMK and Quinary Investment.
In parallel, in August 2023, it was announced that Charge Amps had signed a definitive agreement with NaaS Technology Inc. (NASDAQ) for the latter to acquire all of the shares of the Swedish company and proceed with its IPO.
Finally, in November of the same year, the European firm confirmed that the contract had been terminated and would continue under the ownership of its current shareholders.
“In view of this, the company found itself unable to maintain such a large team across Europe and decided to pick up the slack and return to square one, closing all European offices and concentrating its operations again in the Nordic countries,” Mobility Portal was informed.
Which countries are joining Spain? Ireland, England, Benelux and Poland, among others.
In other words, the company has returned to a situation similar to the one it was in before it began its expansion two years ago.
However, the brand will not disappear from the country, as it will continue to operate through local official distributors.
In this regard, there is concern about the possible loss of quality in after-sales service due to the absence of a sales team in the country, which is a crucial factor for Spanish buyers.
What was Charge Amps’ strategy in Spain?
With a range of exclusive products for premium customers, their aim was to play a key role in a rapidly growing market.
How? Mainly by focusing on understanding the country’s particularities, being persistent and maintaining an international vision to take advantage of the experience acquired in other environments.
“Spain is like the ketchup country: nothing, nothing and nothing, but then everything flows,” described the Regional Director for Iberia of Charge Amps, Henrik Bergman, to Mobility Portal.
With this metaphor, he alludes to a recurring problem in the country, where sometimes the progress of the sector seems stagnant or moving slowly due to bureaucratic obstacles and long waiting periods.
However, gradually, everything begins to develop dynamically.
And the Spanish eMobility market continues to grow
This shows that the problem is exclusively within the company and is not related to the Spanish market, whose growth in the electric mobility sector continues to boom.
This is demonstrated by the latest figures published by the Business Association for the Development and Promotion of Electric Mobility (AEDIVE) and the National Association of Vehicle Sellers (GANVAM).
At the end of the first half of the year, registrations of 100 per cent electric passenger cars increased by 1.2 per cent, reaching a total of 25,864 registered units.
It should be noted that the country is experiencing a general context of market slowdown, regardless of the type of propulsion.
Regarding the deployment of charging infrastructure, during the second quarter of 2024, 1,905 new public access points have been installed and put into operation, with a monthly average of 635 units.
This rate exceeds the average for the first three months of the year, which was 600 chargers per month.
Thus, the total number of operational teams in Spain until June 31, 2024 amounts to 34,105.
According to AEDIVE, there is a growing trend towards installing high-power stations (50 to 250 kilowatts) in interurban environments, as well as 22 kW in urban areas within the tertiary sector.
By region, Catalonia, Madrid and Andalusia stand out as the three with the highest number of “refueling” locations.
