Polestar chief looks on the bright side

Sino-Swedish EV pure play start-up Polestar “is at one of the most exciting points of its history”, according to its firm’s CEO Thomas Ingenlath, as he looks to calm any fears after its progenitor, Gothenburg-headquartered OEM Volvo Cars, confirmed it would distribute a significant portion of its stake in Polestar to its shareholders.

In early February, Volvo announced it would not extend any further funding to Polestar and that it would seek to reduce its holding, most likely by shareholder distribution. So news that it will hand over 60pc+ of its remaining stake in the luxury EV pure play was unsurprising.

Indeed, the fact that Volvo will retain more than a third of its shares and continue to hold 18pc of Polestar could even be interpreted as vote of confidence. “As we have significant operational collaborations with Polestar and a financial relationship, it is logical for us to retain influence through a smaller 18pc stake in Polestar,” says Volvo CEO Jim Rowan.

“The details of the transaction announced by Volvo Cars today outline a more defined and diversified ownership structure for Polestar,” says Ingenlath. “This positions us as a strong, more independent brand in the [Geely] group’s ecosystem, with Geely’s full operational and financial support going forward.

“At the same time as this transaction allows us to welcome new shareholders, our relationship with Volvo Cars remains, as they retain 18% of our shares. Our customers will continue to benefit from our existing collaboration, including commercial operations and after sales — providing piece of mind and consistency,” the Polestar chief continues.

“We have strong confidence in Polestar and look forward to 2024 with great optimism based on the strong and attractive product portfolio, which reaffirms Polestar’s position as a global premium EV brand,” says Daniel Donghui Li, CEO of Geely Holding Group, which will become the largest shareholder in Polestar as well as Volvo.

“As long-term owners of Polestar, we are committed to supporting their announced business plan and financial targets by securing the necessary funding to execute its strategy, and through our global ecosystem of technology, supply chain, and product development.”