Fastned, the European electric vehicle (EV) fast-charging company, has raised nearly €23 million (£19.7 million/$24.1 million) with the issue of new bonds. In addition, investors have extended over €7 million (£6 million/$7.34 million) worth of investments from earlier issues, bringing the total issued amount in this round to nearly €30 million (£25.7 million/$31.4 million). All newly issued bonds are set to mature in December 2026.
From 10 May to 12 June, investors could subscribe to the bonds with five percent interest and a maturity of 4.5 years. Holders of Fastned bonds bought before April 2019 could extend their investment by exchanging those bonds for bonds in the new issue. Including earlier extensions, this has reduced the repayment obligation for Fastned in 2022 by nearly €10 million.
Fastned has been accelerating the pace of its charging station openings across Europe as demand grows. Last month, the company opened its 200th electric vehicle fast-charging station. This is located north of Nuremberg just off the A70 highway at Neudrossenfeld station. This is the company’s 34th station in Germany.
This latest charging station is equipped with four fast chargers that deliver up to 300kW of charging speed. This station, along with the further investment, brings the company closer to its goal of operating a European-wide network of 1,000 fast-charging stations at prime locations.
Michiel Langezaal, Fastned CEO, said: “I’m delighted to again see so much interest from investors in sustainable infrastructure. This bond issue allows us to continue to invest in the expansion of our Europe-wide network, bringing more freedom to electric drivers.
“Electric vehicle sales are hitting all-time highs and on top of that, EU lawmakers last week voted to support a proposed ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2035. This will further speed up the shift to electric mobility across the continent.”
