IONITY with record financing to expand critical infrastructure for Europes electric future
Summary
The financing includes EUR450m in committed green loan facilities and a so-called accordion facility, i.e., the option to increase the credit line by up to EUR150m at a later date to support future growth. IONITYs shareholders BMW Group, Ford, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche representing all Volkswagen Group brands and Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a part of BlackRock, also played a significant role in supporting IONITY in the process.IONITY will invest the new capital in the continued expansion and upgrade of its ultra-fast charging network, and thus in the future security of the European charging infrastructure. Today, IONITY chargers can provide a minimum of 400 kW, enabling up to 300 kilometres of range in just 10 to 15 minutes. As the only European network supporting 800V vehicle architectures at every charging point, IONITY is built to meet the demands of todays electric vehicles and the performance standards of next-generation models.The A&O Shearman core team was led by counsel Dr Jan-Hendrik Bode and comprised furthermore partners Thomas Neubaum (both Frankfurt) and Edward Moser (London), senior associates Can Altan and Alan Markgraf, as well as associates Anastasiya-Evangelina Wiegand and Ann-Kathrin Ludwig (all Frankfurt, all Banking & Finance).The team also included partners Dr. Alexander Behrens (Regulatory), Dr. Heike Weber (Tax), Dr. Jochen Scheel (Real Estate), Dr. Udo Olgem\xf6ller (Public Law), Wolfgang Melzer (Banking & Finance, all Frankfurt), and Dr. Astrid Kr\xfcger (Corporate/M&A, Munich), as well as senior associates Dr. Thomas Hohe (Employment), Dr. Stephan B\xfchner (Public Law, both Frankfurt) and Christin Schlorf (Corporate/M&A, Hamburg). The team also included the associates Nils Najmann (Public Law), Sascha Franke (Real Estate), Jan Henrich (Employment), Dr. Georg Dalitz (all Frankfurt), Tiago Rittner (both Corporate/M&A) and Dr. Paul Gerlach (Real Estate, both Munich).Furtermore, teams from the firms London and Paris offices were also involved, as well as partner law firms Hannes Snellmann (Sweden) and Wiersholm (Norway).Inhouse legal advice was proivided by Philipp Meyer-Lindemann (Head of Legal) and Ferdinand Wieland (Legal Counsel).