Shell Completes Acquisition of Volta
Shell USA, a subsidiary of U.K.-based Shell PLC, has completed its acquisition of Volta Inc., announced in January, in an all-cash transaction of approximately $169 million.
Volta now provides Shell with an existing public charging network of over 3,000 charging stations (which include large digital screens) at high-traffic locations including Walgreens and Ahold Delhaize, Amazon Fresh, Tanger Outlets, Albertsons Cos., Kroger and Whole Foods Market as well as other spots including pharmacies, entertainment venues and banks across 31 U.S. states and territories.
Volta stations double as an innovative media network, which it formally launched in 2021, offering advertisers a digital, location-based network allowing brands to reach consumers in an environmentally sustainable format. In fact, most of the company’s current revenue is generated through advertising, and it plans to increase the number of direct current (DC) fast chargers with a paid charging model, per a media release from Shell.
[READ MORE: Volta Media Network Promotes Michelin Campaign]
Additionally, Volta’s media network expanded location-based targeting by launching the Store Next Door offering, which expanded the categories advertisers can use to target Volta’s 55-inch digital media screens from just the main store to nearly 40 unique options, including healthcare centers, gyms, pet stores and quick service restaurants.
Shell also absorbed Volta’s team of 200-some employees as well as its development pipeline of more than 3,400 additional charge points and capabilities to continue developing and operating EV charging infrastructure.
“We want to make charging as convenient as possible for our customers,” Istvan Kapitany, executive vice president of Shell Mobility, said in the release. “As demand for EV charging continues to grow, destination sites will play a key role in meeting people where they spend a great deal of time: the store, the gym and everywhere in-between. Beyond providing a charging service, Volta specializes in generating advertising revenues from screens embedded into the charge point, adding a source of non-fuel revenue from sites both in the U.S. and globally.”
The acquisition enables Shell to scale its existing network to better participate in the long-term EV charging market opportunity within the U.S., as an increasing number of retailers are offering or plan to offer charging stations and more consumers shift toward more sustainable modes of transportation. This creates more digital-out-of-home (DOOH) advertising opportunities via large-format digital displays on station screens.
Globally, Shell aims to expand its EV charging network to operate more than 500,000 stations by 2025 and roughly 2,500,000 by 2030, meeting customer demand at home, at work or on the go, per the release. Today, Shell operates more than 140,000 public and private charge points around the world.