Volkswagen is looking to sell a stake in its U.S. electric vehicle charging network, Electrify America.
Reuters reports that two unnamed sources said that Volkswagen is working with Citi to find a co-investor that would be willing to inject about $1 billion into the company. The automaker will reach out to infrastructure groups, among others, for help.
Volkswagen was forced to set up Electrify America following 2016’s Dieselgate scandal, as a brand-neutral electric vehicle infrastructure network. As part of its plea agreement with the U.S. government, it needs to spend $2 billion on Electrify America by 2026. This is the first sign of what the automaker is planning on doing with the subsidiary after it is no longer legally required to operate it.
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Electrify America has become one of America’s biggest electric vehicle charging networks with 635 charging stations and more than 2,800 charging plugs up and running around America. Its network is smaller than Tesla’s, which operates around 1,100 stations around North America and has more than 23,000 superchargers around the world.
Electrify America’s stations, though, use a different plug design than Tesla that is used by automakers like Mercedes, Ford, GM, and VW’s brands. Although it shares that in common with ChargePoint, it remains an important network for the electric vehicle industry in the U.S.
Volkswagen is already working with other automakers on a charging network in Europe. Ionity is a joint venture backed by VW, BMW, Hyundai, Ford, and Daimler, and has received interest from Renault and Shell.
