NewMotion, a Netherlands-based electric vehicle (EV) charging station operator backed by vehicle distributor AutoBinck, has been acquired by oil and gas company Shell for an undisclosed amount.
Founded in 2009, NewMotion enables EV owners to charge their cars at more than 50,000 charging points across 22 countries.
The stations draw their power primarily from renewable energy sources, and corporate clients can track the usage of each driver in their fleet through a cloud-based platform.
AutoBinck previously contributed to a funding round of undisclosed size for NewMotion in September 2015, alongside energy distributor Alliander, sustainable technology holding company Tendris and Entrepreneurs Fund.
Engineering group Egis invested an undisclosed amount in the company two months later.
Alliander, Entrepreneurs Fund and Doen had taken part in a round in 2011 that PitchBook put at $4m, before the former two returned for an $11.3m round closed by NewMotion in 2013 that included Tendris.
Assorted angel investors supplied $2.2m in series A capital for the company in 2011, according to PitchBook, which also stated Alliander, Tendris and various investors had provided $490,000 in angel funding in 2009.
Sytse Zuidema, chief executive of NewMotion, said: “We are very pleased to have such a strong investor that fully supports our mission, enabling us to further expand across Europe at a time when the transition to electric vehicles is gathering pace.
“We are excited that our ongoing mission and belief in a transition towards less-polluting transport source has been endorsed so strongly by Shell, one of the world’s leading energy companies.”