Maurice Neligan (56) had his first career as a classic car guy in large corporations. Siemens, Continental, MAN – the native Irishman worked his way up the German automotive industry for over 20 years. But in 2017 he had had enough. Neligan recently told the “Handelsblatt” that the diesel scandal was all around Volkswagen it had become clear to him that the combustion engine was heading towards its end. Neligan saw this as an opportunity for himself: he founded a charging station company called Jolt Energy in Munich.
Neligan wants to bring fast charging to inner cities. Today, there are mostly only slow AC columns with a maximum charging capacity of 22 kilowatts. In many places, the power grid does not allow for more. If so, major construction work would be required to connect it to the medium-voltage grid. Neligan’s solution: Jolt’s charging stations use integrated batteries as buffer storage. They manage with a connection to the low-voltage grid and can still deliver up to 320 kilowatts. E-car drivers should be able to recharge electricity for a range of 200 kilometers in ten minutes.
The idea caught on at Infrared Capital Partners. The infrastructure investor is now providing Jolt Energy with 150 million euros. The start-up announced that the money should flow into the construction of “thousands of fast charging stations in European and North American cities”. In the medium term, the company will need additional outside capital for this.
Jolt Energy suspects the ideal locations for its columns at gas stations, supermarkets, hotels or restaurants, and the start-up is also looking to talk to municipalities, airports or train stations. In return for locations in good locations, they take on the construction and operation themselves. Their property owners do not have to invest anything and could benefit economically from the pillars through a rental model or a share of the revenue.
Neligan himself wants to make money by reselling the electricity. In the best-case scenario, Jolt Energy tops up the integrated storage when there is an abundance of green electricity available on the electricity exchanges. In addition to electricity trading, Neligan also wants to earn money with advertising: Equipped with a large display, the “Jolt Merlin One” charging station is suitable as a digital advertising column.
Competition from ex-employer
Neligan is also good at advertising on its own behalf: “Our ultra-fast charging stations with powerful battery storage are the missing link to accelerate the energy and transport transition in cities.” However, he is not alone with his idea. With “Numbat”, another start-up is pursuing a similar approach. According to the company from Kempten in Allgäu, it expects sales in the three-digit millions in 2024. The best-known Numbat customer is the Feneberg supermarket chain.
Maurice Neligan also competes with one of his former employers: the Volkswagen Group. Through its charging subsidiary Elli, it also offers fast charging stations with integrated buffer storage. Examples of customers are Eon, BP and Shell. With Audi, another VW subsidiary is experimenting with buffer storage and operates three so-called “Charging Hubs” in Nuremberg, Zurich and Berlin.
In addition to the strong competition, the bureaucracy in this country is also a hurdle for Neligan. The connection to the low-voltage grid can be done by yourself at ready-to-use charging locations draw for months. According to its website, Jolt Energy is currently represented at nine Esso filling stations in large cities in Germany. By the end of the year, the company wants to install “another 100” columns in Germany. Provided that buyers and municipal utilities play their part.