Meridiam, an asset manager owning 73% of NYSE-listed European electric vehicle (EV) charging network provider Allego, has launched a tender offer to buy all the remaining shares and take the $460m (€429.2m) company private.
Meridiam is offering the shareholders $1.70 for each share, an amount that represents a premium of 131% to Allego’s closing price of $0.74 on 14 June 2024, the last day of closing prior to the announcement being made public.
Shareholders who choose not to sell their shares in the tender offer will retain their ownership in the delisted company.
Meridiam and Allego said they believe being publicly listed hinders their ability to fully execute their plans.
As part of the deal, Meridiam has reaffirmed its commitment to Allego’s strategy. The asset manager will provide €46m to develop, operate and maintain charging sites in Germany. After delisting, Meridiam will further invest €310m in new equity-like capital to fuel Allego’s growth.
Emmanuel Rotat, director of Meridiam, said: “Since our initial investment in Allego in 2018, we have supported the company along the way. We are pleased today to announce this important milestone for Allego: we strongly believe that operating in a private context, with a continued support from Meridiam as majority shareholder of the company, will ideally position Allego for its next phase of growth.”
Mathieu Bonnet, CEO of Allego, said: “The transaction presented today reiterates the strong support of Meridiam to the company’s strategy and growth vision. It gives significant resources to the company to execute our business plan by extending its ultra-fast charging stations network all over Europe.
“Our hundreds of high-quality backlog sites will be rolled out to offer ubiquitous best charging experience to our EV customers enabling Allego to be a leader in the industry.”
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