Norwegian electric car company Think Global AS raised an additional $47 million and will move production to Finland.
U.S. company Ener1, Inc. (Nasdaq: HEV) will lead this investment round, resulting in about a 31% stake in the carmaker.
Ener1, Inc. is the parent company of EnerDel, a manufacturer of advanced lithium-ion automotive battery systems based in Indianapolis and an existing supplier to Think.
Ener1, Inc. has agreed to invest approximately $18 million in three tranches, and convert an additional $3.0 million in debt for convertible preferred shares of Think, effectively transferring the 10% equity stake held by Ener1 Group to Ener1, Inc. Once all stages are complete, Ener1, Inc. will hold approximately a 31% stake in the company. Other stakeholders in the deal include Investinor, the Norwegian sovereign investment company.
EnerDel and Think have also agreed to enter into a new long-term battery supply agreement as part of the transaction. EnerDel will receive certain exclusivity rights for the supply of batteries for Think’s current and upcoming new vehicle models.
"This investment cements our partnership with one of the leading advanced battery manufacturers in the world," said Think CEO Richard Canny. "In addition to ensuring supply of high-performance battery systems, the new deal will enable us to more fully capitalize on our advantage in the marketplace with the only ‘plug-and-play’ electric vehicle drive system with prismatic lithium-ion technology."
Finnish automaker Valmet Automotive will add about EUR 3 million ($4.3 million) to the equity investment and will start making the Think City cars in Finland later this year, according to a Reuters report. Think will close its Norwegian production facility, resulting in layoffs of about 85 workers.
Think narrowly escaped bankruptcy at the beginning of the year, temporarily shutting down production before receiving a bridge loan.
In March, Think Global said it wanted to open a manufacturing plant in the U.S. to begin production in 2010.
Loading...